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This walk
has a little bit of everything, from woods and open fields, to beaches
and coastal scenery and rare wildlife.
The route is about two miles long and, with stops to take in the views,
takes about an hour and a half.
There are some steep climbs during this walk and steep steps as well,
so you need to be reasonably fit.
Park up at Watcombe Beach car park in Torquay, which is free of charge
and is reached via Teignmouth Road (A379) - there is a sign post.
In fact, it's hard to take a wrong turn on this walk because there
are sign-posts all along the South West Coast Path route from Watcombe
to Maidencombe.
From
the car park, there is a stile which leads you into the woods.
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| The
woods near the start of the walk |
It
can be a bit muddy after rain, so wear suitable shoes. We did this
walk in mid-December, so we saw berries rather than flowers, and
although the trees were rather bare, the woods were still quite
dramatic.
Follow the track through the trees before veering left and climbing
up some steps. From
here, there are great views back to the Torquay coast (see the photo
at the top of this page).
If you look the other way, along the coast to Teignmouth, the cliffs
are a stunning shade of red - in contrast to the limestone in the
opposite direction.
At the top of the steps you have a choice of routes. We followed
the coast path downwards and onto fields.
The grassland here is traditionally managed by light grazing without
the use of artificial chemicals.
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| The
view to East Devon and Dorset |
The
coastal farmland and woodland was bought by the Torquay Corporation
in 1935 to protect the area from development and is these days maintained
by the Torbay Coast and Countryside Trust.
The fields along the coast in this area are home to the very rare
cirl bunting - a species of bird which can now only be found in South
Devon.
There are only around 700 pairs left in the UK, and all are in South
Devon. However, they're highly secretive so you'll be lucky to spot
one!
From these fields on a clear day, you can see all the way across to
Dorset.
At the end of the fields, there is a wooden gate and a few steps which
take you to a path. We took a short diversion, turning right down
to Maidencombe Beach.
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| The
red cliffs at Maidencombe Beach |
We
bumped into some Torbay Coast and Countryside rangers, who told us
that if you're lucky you can see a friendly seal who frolics in the
sea off Maidencombe Beach (if you spot him, he's called Sammy).
We made our way back up the hill to the car park. Cross the car park
and head up the hill, with the Thatched Tavern on your right.
Turn left up the hill and head up Rock House Lane. Further up his
hill is the Orestone Manor, where the first ever commercially produced
Christmas
Card was designed by Victorian artist JC Horsley.
However, we didn't go that far. We turned left at a path which is
sign-posted to Watcombe.
For the return, we made our way through the woods on a higher path
rather than the coast path, which we met up with again towards the
end of the walk.
Article published: 20th December 2004.
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