Post by Dave on Sept 13, 2010 17:57:54 GMT
Dartmouth Castle Walk 17th Jan 2010
As soon as we saw that sun rising up in the sky today, Carol and I knew we just both needed to go out for a nice walk and finish of the day with some good food. The snow is OK when it first arrives but you soon get fed up with and long for a dry and sunny day so you can get out of the house.
It would also be good opportunity to put the new camera I bought for Carol through its paces and I have to say I’m pleased with the results and it’s going to be ideal for her to use as she wanted quality at the press of a button with her having to do more than point and shoot.
Being our first walk of the year and it not really being that warm even in the sun, we wanted a walk that would not be hard on our legs and one where we would not get lost as we usually do and end up walking five or more hours.
We decided in the end to do a walk we started early last year, only Carol who walks miles everyday to work and back had just had a chemo session. She thought she would be OK, but very soon after we started it was clear she did not have an ounce of energy and so we only walked a short way, before returning to the car.
Our destination was Dartmouth Castle, a place we had been to before on another walk, only that time we walked from a place in the South Hams and the walk was more a costal walk and did not go anywhere near Dartmouth itself, only the castle.
So we parked the car in the centre of Dartmouth and walked along the side of the Dart toward the lower ferry taking the odd photo along the way. Then you just walk into a narrow street and on the cobbled Bayard’s Cove which has changed little since 1539 and featured in the TV series ‘the Onedin Line’.
At the end of the cobbled path is a small artillery fort that was built in 1510 to provide additional protection to the harbour. A stone commemorates the Pilgrim Fathers, who put into Bayard's Cove en-route from Southampton to the New World. Just walk on in only don’t do what most of the non locals do and walk back out again. If you walk to the far side toward one of the holes in the wall, you will see if you duck your head you can go through the hole and on to some very steep steps that will take you to the road about.
Now you are above the artillery fort with a lovely view across the Dart to Kingswear and if you wait a while and look way back down the road, you may just see those non locals who were standing inside the fort with you, only they did not know about the steps and walked back the long way around.
The road you are on is not very wide and you walk through what is known as South Town, I think all old towns were once divided into different bits and had their own name, it bit like a part of Brixham being called Cow town I suppose. The road the turns into Warfleet Road and the house on the left of the bend was the home of some famous man who Carol thought was called Bidder, he invented something or other. You can’t go in the house and you only know he once lived there as it has a plaque on the wall saying so.
You then catch sight of a great old building that is the Dartmouth Pottery, I do not know it pottery is still made there, but it’s a bit spoilt in my view, due to homes being built in front of it, they have tried to make them look like they belong there, but they do stand out and look just what they are.
Turn left down the road before the Pottery and you are then looking at a delightful Cove, it was once very important and busy as it had two working kilns on its bank, we would have gone and had a closer look at them, only the path was a bit too muddy. So we walked on a bit further and you come to a fork in the road, on the right the narrow road to the Castle, on the left the even narrower coast path road.
We choose the coast path road and after walking a nice tree lined part of it, arrived at the castle and then turned around and walked back to Dartmouth. Very disappointing that we were unable to get a meal in Dartmouth, even the café that looks like it is a converted railway building( is that what it once was?) was closed and was when we first arrived in Dartmouth.
So it was back to Totnes we headed and we knew just where we were going to eat, The Dartmouth Inn that boosts a famous carvery and pudding for the grand total of just £5. We loved it the last time we had it and we loved it today. Walked in with hunger pains in our stomachs and walked out with pains in our stomachs as we were well and truly stuffed. Great day out and the total cost was a bit of petrol and £10 for our food, you see us men who have to make the plans for the days out, know how to save money as well.
