Stage 66 OS Map of the walk Stage 68
EXMOUTH to OTTERTON Stage 67 (1st July 2011).
We left the house at 9.30 with light west wind and broken cloud. Down on the promenade there were just a few holiday makers watching the tracked tractor preparing to tow the lifeboat down its launch ramp (presumably on a practice mission, in view of the flat calm sea). Beyond the new RNLI station we walked along the hard sand beach before taking the steps up to the clifftop.
A little further on we took more steps back down to the beach but the tide was still too high for us to round Orcombe Rocks so we retreated back up the cliff to the Geoneedle, which marks the start of the Jurassic Coast. From here the path heads uphill past wild flower meadows with masses of butterflies including cabbage whites, meadow browns and a strange white one with black veins. Two kestrels flew past, attracted by masses of rabbits in a field but all the bunnies escaped this time.
We walked through a large complex of holiday homes at Sandy Bay before heading up the long steady slope to the high point of West Down Beacon. The sun was out now and we had clear views from Berry Head in the west to the flat-topped mass of Golden Cap, and further east, the Isle of Portland. Heather was in bloom and we watched small bees digging deep holes in the sandy soil.
The gentle descent past a golf course into Budleigh Salterton was lined with flowering privet hedges and mallow. We stopped for an ice cream before leaving the coast to follow the river Otter up to the first bridge. At this point we left the SWCP and walked on up the river, past water meadows and masses of balsam in flower. We reached the pub at Otterton, beyond the mill, and had a sandwich, in good time to catch the #137 bus at 14.14 back to Exmouth.
Total walking time 4.0 hours, Total distance walked 8.2 miles, 13.0km, time on path 3.5 hours Ascent 270m
The South West Coast Path is the longest of the official UK National Trails, running from Minehead in Somerset round the English south west peninsula coast to Poole in Dorset. The total length is just over 1000 kilometres or, more precisely, 630 miles. Only very dedicated walkers could contemplate completing the whole walk in one go, although plenty of people have done just this. Received opinion is that it would take around 6 weeks, even for the most dedicated.
Get Ordnance Survey maps on your website to enhance the service and customer experience.
Jurassic Coast Geoneedle
River Otter