Monday May 23^rd, 2016                       DAY 1                                   Miles 185

Well, my coastal journey has begun.  I set off this morning at 10.00am from Exmouth beach and the distinctive red sea cliffs at Orcombe Point.  My destination today is Ryde on the Isle of White (selected as I want to take an early morning ferry from near there across to Southsea). Orcombe Point will also be my finishing point in about 5 weeks time. 

Orcombe Point 

I drove west along the Esplanade and followed the road past the RNLI Lifeboat Station and over the cliffs to Littleham.  It feels somewhat appropriate to be starting close to a lifeboat station, having myself been with the volunteer marine search & rescue in Vancouver for the past 8 years.  The Exmouth lifeboat and lifeboat station are both fairly new.  The River Exe at Exmouth is gradually silting up with the sandbanks moving around.    Indeed I remember that there used to be some very large sand dunes close to where the lifeboat station is now, which have recently disappeared.  Over the last two or three bad winter storms have dispersed them, mainly across the Esplanade.  In January of 2016 I well recall driving along this same road and found it similar to skiing across moguls, sand was inches deep on the road.  As the sandbanks shifted and more silt was laid down, it became impossible to securely launch the previous Trent Class lifeboat, with its deep draft, on certain tides.  So the station was relocated from the Marina to its new site closer to the ocean.  The new Shannon class lifeboat is a joy to see in action.  It is launched and recovered by a purpose built tractor that takes it into the water.  The return is even more spectacular.  They just point it at the beach and head at full speed, beaching a good way up the sand, where the tractor then collects it and returns it to its new building.

At Littleham, or Sandy Bay, is a vast Caravan and Holiday Chalet Park called Devon Cliffs.  There must be a thousand of them.  They all appear to be good quality and I am sure meet the needs of many families looking for a seaside holiday.  We found from experience though that you can book a home in the neighbourhood for less money than the cost of booking a caravan here for a week!  For me it would be just too many people all in one place all at the same time.   Unfortunately, a feature of much of today’s drive has been the plethora or chalet and caravan parks right along the south coast.  Though they serve a function, Britain’s lovely coastal vistas are becoming blighted by them.

The next town was Budleigh Salterton, surely one of the treasures of the many seaside towns of Devon.  It is not much bigger than a good-sized village.  It is notable in that here is the start of the World Heritage Jurassic Coast.  The sandstone cliffs running eastward along the coast towards Weymouth and Bournemouth have provided some of the most exciting fossil and dinosaur remains in Britain.  Budleigh has a pebble beach made up of smooth stones of the most incredible designs and colours.   There is a high pebble bank running parallel to the ocean onto which the waves break.  This is the remains of an ancient river bed that thousands of years ago, apparently, was joined to Brittany in France. This high bank is an extension of the beach and stretches towards the cliffs at the northern end, but is eventually breached by the exit of the River Otter into the ocean.  When the tide comes in the river cannot escape and backs up behind the shingle bank and meanders amongst channels within the mud flats.  Over time this has become a haven for birds with common twitchers being seen right throughout the year. 

 Budleigh Salterton

Budleigh Pebbles

From Budleigh I followed the Sidmouth Road, turning off at East Budleigh and into Otterton, a charming village on the River Otter with a mill.  During Napoleonic times French prisoners of war were tasked with keeping the river clear so that boats could sail up it to the mill.  However, thought the mill can still operate, it only mills flour today to turn into bread and cakes that are sold in their café.  Kayaks are the only vessels now able to travel up to the mill.  A tributary of the Otter runs down the small high street, but this is not so charming in times of high rainfall and many times the villagers have had to use sand banks to stop the river entering their homes.  Though I live in Vancouver, my first ever, white Christmas was actually experienced in Otterton.  In 2010, we had rented a cottage.  On Christmas Eve the snow fell so quickly we could not get out of the village.  But the local Pub was open and that made it all right!

Out of Otterton the road is single track over the cliffs, providing spectacular views as you reach the top.

  Towards Exmouth from Otterton Ridge

It then drops down into a small wooded area and through the trees you get a most wonderful view of Sidmouth.  This is another almost unspoiled little town, mainly Edwardian and a favourite of Queen Victoria; though on her first visit here as a small child, her father the Duke of York was taken ill and died.  Sidmouth is also a mainly shingle and pebble beach, but groins put in in recent years are now creating sandy beaches as they hold back the wave action.  Sidmouth is one of my favourite places in Devon with old fashioned shops and a family department store, Fields, which prides itself on offering “service as it used to be”.   For the genteel folk of Sidmouth, afternoon tea at Fields is pleasant thing to do.  In the last few months though the family have sold Fields to a Chinese company, so it remains to be seen whether changes will be made.  The sea cliffs are unstable here, particularly after heavy rain and some of the footpaths and fences at the far end of the town have now fallen onto the beach, but the famous Jacob’s Ladder, at the south end of the town is still a safe and popular beach.

Sidmouth

If you follow the sea front and then proceed through the small streets you come to a ford, which, of course, I had to drive through at speed and make a wave!  Some of the locals gave me a wave also, at least I think it was a wave, so I just waved back.  The road comes to a junction and here you turn right to Salcombe Regis where there is an observatory that still operates.  Once on the main road you quickly turn off towards Branscombe.  Just past the turn off is a Donkey Sanctuary, free to enter and with 100s of donkeys living a happy retirement.  Branscombe is reached via a very narrow and steep road.  You will not any find drivers from North America on this road, at least not twice! The road is not even as wide as an American parking space, yet traffic is two-way.  You just have to drive cautiously and if you meet another vehicle, one driver has to use the passing places.  A great way to make someone’s day and receive a genuine thank you wave and a smile.  About half way down is a superb National Trust tearoom offering Devon cream teas.  Probably the best pub in Devon, the Masons Arms is located in the main part of the village, but keep on going to the beach. This was the site a few years ago of a shipwreck. The Napoli broke its back and was beached on a sand bank.  Lots of containers were washed off and swept up onto the beach.  Locals then came down to help themselves to the pickings, which even included 6 BMW motorbikes!  Though the Police did all they could some of the loot was never recovered.  Smuggling and pirating is obviously still in the Devon genes.

Just back up from the beach you follow the road to Beer.  No sight of the sea as the journey is along typical sunken roads with high banks and hedges on top.  Allegedly all of these roads were trodden out by cattle in times past.  Just before you enter Beer there are the Beer caves that go back to Roman times and provided the white limestone blocks for many British buildings, including Exeter Cathedral.  Now they are protected as the roost for the declining greater horseshoe bat colony.

Beer is also almost another one street town with the road leading to the beach.  However it has great charm, made more so by the small stream that runs in a gulley alongside the pavement.  On the beach are drawn up a number of fishing boats that are still very active.  This is a pretty scene, made more attractive by the colourful beach huts that are lined up.  The footpath above the beach provides wide views across to Seaton, the next town along the coast. 

The road to Seaton provides more coastal views, but I find Seaton a disappointing place.  Though the town is tidy, its location facing directly onto the ocean, with nothing to see but sea, makes it feel bleak to me. In fact you cannot see much of the sea from the road.  There is a high wall blocking any view from a parked car.  You have to get out to see over it.  No sitting in the car here with a cup of tea or having a doze, while the waves wash on the sand.  Seaton is however saved from mediocrity by its wonderful old tramway that runs right along the Axe estuary to Colyton; absolutely worth the trip if you have the time.  We have in the past had a great day out with the children on the tramway.

You leave Seaton crossing the mouth of the River Axe and go back away from the water, before going down again as you reach the town of Lyme Regis.  Most people know Lyme as the setting for the film the French Lieutenant’s Women and the picture of Meryl Street standing on the end of the Cob, the Harbour Wall.  There is no doubt that Lyme is a very pretty place, but traffic through the town is congested and parking is awful.  But a Monday in May, before the school’s break up for the summer, is clearly the time to go.  Previously whenever I have tried to park down by the Cob in the nearby car park it has not been possible.  In the summer it must be worse and I am sure traffic jams occur as people going looking for parking meet others coming up the hill who have given up looking.  You can always use the Park & Ride just outside the town for £5.

The Cob at Lyme Regis

The Cob invites you to walk on it like Meryl.  But be warned!  It is uneven, has no fencing and slopes towards the ocean.  I felt very nervous on it.  The beach next to the Marina has very good sand, but I suspect that it is imported as elsewhere it is shingle.  I also noticed that they had groomed it.  The only other place I know that does this is Miami.

To drive through the town is a challenge as there is a very narrow section, on a slope and on a bend.  Rightly the town have traffic lights here to minimise collisions, but the heroes have to be the bus drivers (double deckers no less) that negotiate this hazard and also all of the country lanes.

I left Devon behind at Lyme Regis, which is in the county of Dorset and headed on for Portland and Weymouth.  The first seaside place you come to is Charmouth, famous for the fossils that have been found there and also for Golden Cap the highest point on this coast, which served as much of the backdrop for the TV series, Broadchurch.  I well remember Charmouth as the place in which my son nearly drowned.  In the hot summer of 1976 we came to Charmouth for two weeks.  We were joined by some cousins for the day and being very hot stood in the ocean to chat.  I was in charge of the children.  My cousin suddenly sad “Where’s James?”  We looked around and could not see him but his hat was floating close by.  We jumped and grabbed at the hat and found that it was still on the head of a two year old who came up coughing and spluttering from beneath the water.  He was too young to tell me off, but his mother certainly did!

The ocean frontage going on from Golden Cap is notable for the pebble bank formation, called Chessil Beach, which up to 15 metres high and stretches for 29 kilometers all the way to Portland.  This is a storm bank that was created by the ocean about 6000 years ago when sea levels were higher.  The pebbles here are markedly different from those at Budleigh, belying their different origins.  Chessil Beach is made up of very small pebbles, not much bigger than shingle.

Portland is peninsular of land with a very tall lighthouse, known as Portland Bill at its southernmost tip.  Historically Portland’s two main industries have been the navy and quarrying.  Portland stone is famous and has been used for many major buildings in England.  It almost white when quarried but fades to either a light grey or a warm yellow colour, somewhat akin to Cotswold stone.  The drive onto Portland is not especially attractive as the quarries and cliffs above the town seem to overpower it.  It was a sunny day and I saw at least three men walking around with no shirt on.  Each of them was covered all over with heavy tattoos.  Either the old naval tradition or, the new fashion that seems to be afflicting so many men (and women) these days.

Portland Bill Lighthouse

Weymouth is a grand town of good size.  It has an excellent sandy beach that seems to run right along its front.  It was the venue for the sailing competition in the 2012 Olympics.  I had little time to stop as I wanted to see both the great sea arch of Durdle Dor and the almost circular cove at Lulworth.  Unfortunately both can only be experienced by entering yet more chalet/caravan parks and paying £4.  I drove in, took a photo of Durdle Dor from a distance and then drove out.  Anyway I had also realised that my journey planning was way too optimistic and I was averaging, with stops, only 20 miles per hour rather than the 30 I had planned for.  If I hung around too much I might miss my ferry to the Isle of Wight, which had been booked and paid for. 

I set off in a hurry and switched on the GPs rather than use the road atlas.  The GPS, despite my trying to instruct it differently took me to a main road.  OK I thought I can make up some time.  Unfortunately Dorset County Council had decided to resurface 10 miles of road by sprinkling a little bit of sticky tar and then pouring gravel over it.  As this surface was then deemed to be slippy, until enough vehicles had driven on it, the Council had arranged for there to be traffic led by a police car at 20mph in convoy for about 10 miles.  As at one point you would come across the workmen in the road so they had posted flag persons with stop/go boards, which meant single file traffic.  The hold-us were at least 5 miles long in each direction.  My GPS gave me no alternatives so I had to stick with it.

When I emerged close to the ruins of Corfe Castle all I could do was take a photo through the car window and continue on.  To get to my ferry to the IOW, I had to take another ferry and go through Bournemouth.  The ferry from Studland to Sandbanks is a delights.   The journey only last about 10 minutes but you get excellent views across into Sandbanks and what are the most expensive houses in Britain; £20 million, £30 million and up. When you get off the ferry it feels like you are driving into a Mediterranean town such as Cap Ferat.  

Ferry to Sandbanks

Sandbanks takes you into Bournemouth which has one of the longest sandy beaches and esplanades in England.  It is a perfect town with lovely houses, hotels and guest houses and despite relying heavily on tourism does not seem to have given itself over to them, keeping an “expensive” and quality aura.  My endeavours to drive on the road closest to the ocean were somewhat thwarted by the large coach in front of me that blocked most of my view of the road signposts.  Eventually I found my way and followed the ocean to Christchurch, just as pretty as Bournemouth but with a more laid back feel.  After Christchurch you continue to New Milton which lacks the quality feel of its other two neighbours.  Here again I saw tattoo man, or at least some of his cousins.  I suppose if you spend that much money on covering your body you must feel the need to uncover it and show off what you have got.

At Milton On Sea I gained an excellent view across to my destination for tonight the Isle of Wight and the famous rock formation, the Needles, at its westerly point.

I scraped into the car park of the Wight ferry with one minute to spare.  They had me in the system and the man in the booth gave me a ticket telling me to place it on my windscreen and go into Lane 3.  After 15 minutes the same man came along and asked me for the ticket back again and said I could then board the ferry.  They obviously take recycling very seriously.  One unusual and money generating scheme used by Wight Ferries is that if you pay at the terminal they charge you and extra £10 than if you had booked on line.  However, though cheaper, if you book on line there is no refund if you have to cancel.

The ferry to the IOW was just 40 minutes and at £55 (or £65 if you pay at the terminal) gave excellent views of the hundreds (though probably more correct to say thousands) of pleasure boats moored in Lymington harbor and marina.

When I got off the ferry I drove to the Needles park to have a closer view of these iconic structure.  Unfortunately the Park is another horrible car park and entertainment area.  Again I drove in, took a photo from a distance and left.

 The Needles

Apart from stopping at an old pub in Niton, highly touted but not overly special, I arrived at my hotel, the Travel Lodge in Ryde.  In the morning it is a short drive to the ferry across to Portsmouth.  I had decided that I would use AirBnB for most of my accommodation on this trip.  However, when you put in a date and my destination of Ryde, I got 5 pages of possible places to stay.  I chose one, clicked on it and it came up as not available.  This continued for 2 pages of selections.  I then contacted AirBnB and asked why is it that they have filters for all sorts of things but not a filter to block B&Bs that are already booked on the day you want.  The young lady who replied said that if I put in the date I want to stay only those available will come up.  I had put the date in, but tried it again, same result.  I emailed her again and she said it does work.  It doesn’t Air BnB and don’t try and tell me that it does, ‘cos it doesn’t.  I have 33 more nights to book yet, so please correct it asap!

Well apart from learning that my journey times are not as calculated I have also found that my blog is not as short (and short to do) as calculated.  After tonight you will be getting much shorter ones.  I shall save the longer version for the book (which is not planned!!).