The next day the rain passed and we were eager to explore more of the beautiful coastline of Devon. With the chill of Christmas in the air, symbolised by the stunning small Robin in our garden we headed to explore Bigbury-on-Sea. The view driving down along the coastline looking across at Bigbury-on-Sea was amazing. It was also our lucky day. We had time our visit perfectly as on low tide you walk across the tidal bank to the picturesque Burgh Island.
As we walked across the parting sea passage we were blown around the coastal winds. Once we reached the tidal island we spotted the huge tractor boat that can ferry you across if the tide is in. The sheer size of this thing was amazing.
We learned that this island is where Agatha Christie spent most of her time writing her novels. The island contains a very expensive gated resort.
We were more interested in the all inspiring gobsmackingly beautiful views of the coastline.
We were inspired by all the natural beauty to take the hiking path to the top part of the island where we had 360 degree views.
We explored the old ruin at the top, which is the remains of an old Chapel.
After our nice walk we headed further down the coast to a very pretty coastal village called Dartmouth which sits idyllically on the mouth of the river. Pretty pastel houses are a show stopper as you drive into the town. It is an extremely scenic town with many boats dotting about merrily in the bay.
The cannons and fort at the end of the bay drew use in. Another historical gem built over 500 years ago to keep out pirates and enemy ships from entering the bay. This tower was built with a lot of heavy cannons and artillery windows. We never get sick of seeing and reading about the rich history which is embedded in Europe everywhere!
We found a great coffee house called, Woodroast. They also made yummy homemade cakes.
We were here to explore the beautiful historical town centre with its cobbled streets and outstanding Tudor buildings.
After exploring the town we drove a few miles down the road to explore Dartmouth Castle, which sits on the harbour entrance. The tiny Christmas Robin sat proudly guarding the castle with his chest puffed out in the winter sun.
We enjoyed the coastal drive through Slapton Sands. It holds a lot of history as in 1943 as a lead up to D-Day the British government rehoused round 3000 residents to use this area as a practise area due to it having similar landscapes to that of Utah beach where D-Day took place.
This area was used as a training area by the army for the huge scale rehearsal for D-Day invasion of Normandy in 1944. Thirty thousand troops prepared for their mock landing which included live firing exercises. Bullets marks are still to be found in the surrounding buildings. An army tanker sits as a memorial.
We were blessed by some outstandingly beautiful sunsets as we drove on towards Salcombe.
A pretty as a picture village on the water. Here we enjoyed watching the sun go down over the water. We also enjoyed browsing in the local art gallery. We brought some beautiful wildlife prints as memories of the coos, deer, and colourful pheasants. We have found the artists here in the UK do a fabulous job of capturing the wildlife.
