Head inland along the river Dart
One of the great features of our apartment’s location is that it lies right on the South Devon Coast Path. The South Devon coast is indeed fabulous, but Devon also boasts fantastic woodland walks inland, swapping wild waves for wild woods and seagulls for songthrushes. The old english “Dart” derives from the word for “Oak” and there are many woods along the valley. Here are a few of our favourites:
Right on the doorstep of the pottery is Gallant’s Bower. This is a steep walk through the trees covering a civil-war-era hill fort. Coming out at the top you have a great view over estuary, the town and the coast. As a bonus you’ll be surrounded by Bluebells In Late April. There is a sign to the footpath at the top of the Warfleet Creek Road just past the top of the Pottery carpark. From the top you can walk down the other side of the hill to join the coast path.
The Dart Valley is wooded most of the way to Totnes. For a longer walk, the Dart Valley Trail runs from Kingswear up to Greenaway. It’s a 9 mile walk very popular with our guests, and you will enjoy resting your feet taking the boat back to Dartmouth.
On the edge of Dartmoor, just north of Buckfast, lies Hembury Woods, a lovely open woodland, visually stunning in Autumn and shady in summer, with spots for swimming in the River Dart. (see photo above).
Up on Dartmoor proper, Wistman’s Wood is a bit of a drive from Dartmouth, but if you are exploring Dartmoor, then this ancient stand of stunted, moss covered oaks is a must, especially in autumn when the leaves turn. Park by the River Dart by Two Bridges Hotel; there’s a clear path 1km up the valley to the wood.
If you’ve exhausted this list, you can find lots more woodland walks (plus the best bits of the Coast Path) at the website for South Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
