Our base in Ashburton is perfect for exploring the towns of Devon. Each town has its own inner beauty and local attractions.
English towns suffer from the same problems that New Zealand towns do. Smaller towns and villages must find ways to keep their communities alive, using history, specialised businesses or industry to attract people. Ashburton is a mecca for antiques and is well known for its boutique shops. It has just won a fight against a supermarket chain from setting up on it's boundaries - a victory for the survival of small businesses here.
One thing that stands out in both England, and France, is the picturesque floral decorations in their towns. Flowers in baskets, flowers on windowsills, huge towers with tiers of flowers - petunias are popular, geraniums and pansies too. All lending their bright and beautiful colours to make these towns attractive to visitors. Pubs are especially good at providing an attractive floral facade.
These are a few of the towns we've visited: Torquay, Newton Abbot, Exeter, Oakhampton, Tavistock and ....
Totnes: Here we visit our first A & P show one sunday afternoon. It's a reasonable day out - a good part of it spent waiting, with hundreds of others, in traffic to reach the grounds. It's a typical country show - people and animals everywhere. A voice booms over the loudspeaker - a horse and gig driving display in this ring; a dog race in that ring; Jacobs sheep, which Max describes in colours vanilla, chocolate and caramel, in those pens; rabbits in this tent; poultry in that tent; and don't forget the craft tent and the wild bird display!
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This barn owl is much bigger than it looks,
just under two feet high!
Totnes, the second oldest borough in England, is delightful. It's small town centre offers alternative-style shopping with an abundance of art, health, and organic food shops, plus a big outdoor market every Friday. |
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| Totnes is also home to Norman Castle, which towers above the town on its steep mound |
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| Young hopefuls wait for the crabs to bite... |
Salcombe: This quaint seafaring town tumbles down the hill to a tiny, narrow shopping area and harbour. Salcombe is a popular resort for holidaymakers and those with a passion for all things boating & sea related. Fishing for crabs is a favourite past-time for kids and their adults. We watch as lines are lowered into the water with rotting bacon tied to the end to tempt the cautious crustaceans.
Dartmouth: Another seaside town, a pretty little port, which is home to the Dartmouth Castle and the Britannia Royal Naval College. Unfortunately, it's a little late in the day and we stop only for a coffee.
Teignmouth: On suggestion from a friend, Neil, we visit one of Devon's oldest seaside resorts. Big waves crash on the award winning sandy Town Beach. An old Victorian pier still stands and is a focal point. A quick peer into the amusement arcade tells us that its Victorian-style leisure activities have long been forgotten in exchange for modern technology. Colourful beach huts line the Point towards the estuary and along Back Beach, boats line up on the sand.
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| Art trail: Butterflies made from recycled CDs |
We try crab sandwiches and, shelter under umbrellas (it's raining again) as we explore the streets and wander along the waterfront, following an art trail as we go.
Brixham: A charming fishing port with colour-washed houses stacked neatly around it's hills. A statue of Prince William of Orange guards the Quay. It was in this little port that the prince first set foot in England - he later became King William III. It's a Thursday and Pirate Day - pirate music, games, and dress-ups gives this pretty seaside resort a fun and festive atmosphere. Combined with a sunny day (becoming a little rare these days), it's a lovely outing.
Bovey Tracey: A Dartmoor village, Bovey Tracey is small but what it lacks in size, it makes up in floral decorations. The village centre is a pretty and colourful sight for visitors. Here we visit the The House Of Marbles, an extraordinary museum and studio housed in an old pottery factory. It's completely free to visit and park, and even has a cafe. We spend over an hour here, glossing over all the different types and sizes of marbles, reminiscing about old times when we had our own marbles as kids. There's also a glass blowing studio and a pottery museum.
Moretonhampstead & Chagford: Both Dartmoor villages lie in some of the most beautiful English countryside we have seen. Rolling green hills and valleys with roadsides full of summer's bounty with flowering hemlock, golden rod, tansy, Queen Anne's Lace, and aster to name just a few. Stone walls crisscross the land and thatched cottages suddenly appear out of nowhere.
Chagford is charming and based around it's small square and the distinctive octagenal 'Pepper Pot' Market House. We discover two of the most amazing, well- stocked hardware shops we have ever seen, here in the middle of nowhere! James Bowden and Webbers stand side by side and both are full of everything you could possibly need - farm clothing ( an entire room dedicated to gumboots) tools, kitchenware, sports equipment, and so much more.
Each shop is like a cavern and reaches far back into the building. Up little stairways, we discover secret rooms, to the left and right, all full of stock. It's a magical find and we learn that these two shops are famous and bring visitors from afar.
Princeton: At 1300 feet above sea level, Princeton is the highest town on the Dartmoor. It is famous for it's ties with Sir Arthur Conan's novel, Hounds of the Baskervilles, and for its Dartmoor Prison. The prison is an austere and forbidding looking collection of stone buildings - prisoners must have thought and perhaps still do think that they've been sent to another world - such is the isolation and drab landscape of the area. After being shown around the area by young man whose surname was Baskerville, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's mind got to work and the first few lines of hi famous novel were written while he stayed at Princeton. We visit the prison museum but neither of us are inspired to buy any prison momentoes - if anything it's mildy depressing and we are pleased to leave and find a nice stream to have our picnic lunch.
Widecombe in the Moor: A delightful little moor village not far from Ashburton. After driving through winding roads to reach it, we are surprised to find it bustling with visitors and a couple of tourist buses tucked into its carpark.
There are at least three little shops dedicated to souvenirs, a pub, two cafes, a visitor centre, a church (the Church of St Pancras, also known as the Cathedral of the Moor) and a handful of houses.
Buckfast: This tiny village is home to the Benedictine monks in Buckfast Abbey, a living monastery in a truly peaceful setting. Here we enjoy strolling through the gardens, viewing an art exhibition and browsing in the three shops - gifts, books and a monastic produce shop. The produce comes from monasteries and convents from throughout Europe. We buy a jar of French creamed honey - yumm, and some French perfume - all made by monks or nuns.
Plymouth: The Flavour Fest is on when we visit this large seaside town. Brightly coloured stalls offering all types of yummy food is on offer. We share a spicy sausage wrapped in a bun and some delicious Thai. We explore Drake Circus, a huge shopping centre with everything you could possibly want. A walk up through gardens takes us to the Plymouth Hoe where we view the entrance to the harbour and overlook the newly restored Tinside Lido, a seaside salt water swimming pool.
We continue our walk around the bay to the Barbican, Plymouth's historic port. Here we find the wharf busy with yachts and people taking part in the 2011 Fastnet Race, sponsored by Rolex. It's a hive of activity and yachts all sizes.
Without the use of our trusty Renault Scenic, we would not have been able to discover the heartland of Devon - its wonderful towns and its crowning jewel, the Dartmoor. A big thank you to our homesit hosts, Anna, Ian, Isaac and Angus, for loaning us their car.
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