I love being elderly, retired and in possession of my bus pass and Senior rail card as with a couple of free days in the diary and fine weather forecast last week we were able to take off on a mini holiday and went out for the day a few times.
Day 1 - Wednesday
Our first outing was to Dartington Hall which you may remember I had visited on my bus pass trip a couple of weeks earlier. I wanted to show it to Mr M and so on Wednesday we set off on the train to Exeter where we caught a connection to Totnes and from there we walked to the Hall along the River Dart footpath as before. It was so much easier without the backpack I must say!
I had meant to take a photo of the pathways round the courtyard and forgotten last time so now I was able to do so. I loved the mix of cobblestone, flagstones and pebbles (taken from the River Dart). I had discovered that the path was designed by Beatrix Farrand an American landscape gardener whose first task was to redesign the Courtyard. The gardens were developed under her direction between 1934 and 1939.
Here is something else I hadn't seen last time - St Mary's church tower which is 13th century with a top added in the 15th century. The church stood here until 1878 and materials from it were used in the building of the Church of St Mary's elsewhere at the upper drive entrance to the estate. The tower remained and was used as an American radio communications tower during World War 2. Now it stands lonely and looking a little odd without the rest of the church peacefully in its little graveyard basking in the sun (or at least it was when we visited it) ......
... and just along side is now a Japanese Meditation Garden designed by Philip Booth in 1990. Quite an appropriate place to site a meditation garden I thought.
I loved these flights of steps and felt a little nearer to heaven with each step I took!
Joseph's Pillow 2005 (a bit on the uncomfortable side I'd say!) by Peter Randall-Page is a sphere of 12 spirals aligned with and inspired by the Twelve Apostles - the 1840s row of topiaried Irish yews alongside the Tiltyard which I showed in my post here.
This bridge was also designed by Peter Randall-Page in 2011 and links the access paths between the 12 apostles and the sculpture.
We had lunch in the White Hart where I had eaten during my stay here - this little alcove alongside our table had this beautiful jug of flowers in it - just my kind of floral arrangement! Dartington Hall was busy with preparations for the upcoming Ways With Words Festival but it still managed to retain its tranquil ambiance away from the courtyard and lawns nearest to the Hall which were having drinks tents, marquees and so on errected. What fun a weekend being here during this festival would be especially if the weather was good - I am keeping the idea in mind for next year.
After lunch we set off to walk through the grounds to the Shops at Dartington taking a different route to that which I had done a week or so ago.
We passed this statue - Flora - which was the name of Dorothy Elmhirst's mother. Flora was presented to the Elmhirsts in 1967 by the people of Dartington. The statue itself dates back to the late 17th century and now marks the site of the Elmhirsts' ashes and is often adorned with flowers as indeed it was when we saw it.
Leaving the gardens we wended our way along the quiet little road with lovely country views to the left ...
... in to the right we could see Dartmoor in the distance. We had a potter round the shops which are mainly situated around the area which was once used for cider making.
Just along the path past this little stream and a little distance from the rest of the shops is a fascinating shop called Restore which sells items recycled or restored from what might otherwise become landfill ranging from furniture to jewellery and including a rather clever little pendant made using electronic items and wire based on a bit of printed circuit board (now maybe I will have a go at something like that for Mr M has tins filled with coloured wires, resistors and capacitors and old PC boards in the garage I wonder if he'd let me lose with the soldering iron!) I also wonder if they'd like some of my little packets made from old book pages or brown paper lined with tissue and fastened with a button?!
Having had a cup of tea and a scone back at the shops we set off for home. The path to the station led through the trees, and I noticed the way the sun caught the pale trunks illuminating them amongst the deeper green of their leaves, where we caught the train back to Exeter and didn't have to wait long there for the train home. We got back tired but happy after our lovely day out in the fresh air. We had wondered whether to stay overnight at Dartington but in the end had decided that it would be easier to come home and go out again the following day as that way we wouldn't need to take any luggage with us a decision I was happy with in view of the heat.
Day 2 Thursday
Having had an early start on Wednesday - well early by our standards these days and getting the 8.39 train - we decided to have a leisurely breakfast and to go to Exeter on the 10.39 rather than rush things. I am after all a fan of Slow Living! We got off the train and wandered up this little street which runs parallel with the busier road to the town centre. It was the sort of place you'd write home about had you gone abroad on holiday, filled with little shops and no traffic! We walked through the town to the bus station where we used our bus passes to get a free ride to Topsham.
At Topsham we made our way through the little streets which, once off the main route through town, were quiet and peaceful with flowers at many of the doorways of the pretty houses we passed. We were making for the Ferry and X in the photo above marks the spot we were heading for. Last July we had walked from Exeter to this place and I wrote about it here and we'd enjoyed it so much we wanted to come again.
Getting off the ferry on the other side of the estuary we walked up this little path .....
...... to the Lock Keeper's Cottage where we were planning to have a sandwich lunch again.
The view from the upstairs window was as lovely as ever - we chose to eat inside as it was too hot to sit out in the sunshine at the picnic tables on the grass.
Lunch over we wandered round a bit trying to decide whether to walk the canal path back to Exeter in spite of the heat and the fact that there would be no shelter or to get the ferry back to Topsham and the bus to Exeter where it would be cooler in the shops! The latter was decided upon.
So we made our way to the jetty to await the ferry once more.
Topsham is a pretty little town and the Dutch influence is apparent in the shape of many of the buildings. Back in Exeter we wandered round for a while and then had tea in a pretty little cafe near the Cathedral before getting the train home again.
Day 3 - Friday
I had arranged to meet up with a couple of friends on Friday so once again I was at the station Senior Railcard at the ready to purchase a ticket, this time to Salisbury. Again it wasn't an early start as we were not to meet till 11.15 so I didn't need to leave till the 10.29 train.
My friends and I wandered round away from the town a little way enjoying the old buildings before turning back to our chosen destination for lunch Greengage Cafe where we spent a long time over a sandwich and a drink catching up on all the news and gossip.
We wandered through the city centre towards the cathedral away from all the noise of a busy city. Isn't this a pretty bit of garden? We walked round the cathedral and noticed that there was a crowd of people looking at something through binoculars and telescopes and of course we had to find out what it was that was so interesting. There is a pair of peregrine falcons nesting on the spire and apparently this year they have managed to succeed in laying eggs in a box which has been placed for just that purpose since last year the eggs just rolled away! It's amazing what you come across when out for the day isn't it? Last time I saw these birds was at Symonds Yat many years ago where they were nesting on the cliffs. Seemingly the Cathedral spire would be just as desirable a nesting place for them since they would be safe from predators and there would be plenty of food (apparently they like pigeons - not so desirable for the pigeons though!) for them and certainly houses in the Close are considered very desirable and incredibly expensive so why not chose the spire for a nest?
This is the Parish Church of St Thomas originally a wooden chapel built in about 1220 and thought to be for the men working on building the Cathedral. A small stone church dedicated to St Thomas was built after 1226 and that superceded by a rebuilding programme in 1447 and further building in about 1548 resulted in the church as it is today. The Cathedral serves the Diocese but this church serves the city. We had a look inside and wished we had longer as there was much of interest including a Doom Painting which was painted probably in the late 1400s but in 1593 was covered in whitewash and a wooden panel of the coat of arms of Elizabeth I was placed over the chancel instead. This wooden panel is still in the church and the painting has been restored over the years and is now considered to be one of the finest in - was it Europe or perhaps just Britain?I forget! Whichever it was an interesting and scary painting which would have ensure the congregation didn't stray from the right path!
As you can see from the church clock it was now time to set off for the station and our respective trains home. Another interesting and enjoyable day and it stayed dry and at times sunny for us but oh boy did the rain come down once I was home!
Three days of outings and this weekend has been spent on the neglected chores! How was your week?
Delicate pale pink blossoms reminescent of diaphanous tea dresses (do such things still exist these days?) or maybe beautiful lingerie adorn a bush at the bottom of our garden......
Their fragility though is not all it seems and far from being ethereal and gentle this plant is a bit of a thug!
It is in a bid to take over the border and to dominate the other plants and the hydrangea and the spirea in front of it are in danger of being vanquished by this tyrannical plant. Never judge by appearances it seems would be the lesson here!
Speaking of hydrangeas - here is the wonderful deep blue one we brought from France, because we loved its unusual almost indigo blooms, just coming into flower - now resolutely pink! Maybe we should have brought some French soil to plant it in! We have tried feeding it with some special stuff but it has other ideas and prefers to remain pink.
The lavender alongside our driveway this year is an amazing blue not really captured in this photo - it is almost luminous.
The bees and butterflies seem to like it.
And my sweet peas are still going great guns and here chez Marigold we have little vases of them everywhere giving the place a wonderful perfume - now they are another delicate, dainty flower but at least the plants simply climb up the netting and are in no danger of taking over like their friends the lavatera!
Many thanks for all your kind comments on my recent Bus Pass trip posts. I did yesterday have a look at some different backpacks and am wondering whether to make my next trip to a different part of Devon or Somerset reachable by bus from here or whether to go somewhere further afield and start from there. I did have the idea of revisiting all the places I have lived during my 70 years but that might take forever by bus as they range from Liverpool to Suffolk and the Forest of Dean as well as Surrey, Salisbury and round here not to mention France which is not possible on the bus with a Bus Pass - but watch this space for further travels with a backpack!
Following on from my previous post here are days 3 and 4 of my bus pass trip.
Thanks to those of you who left such kind comments on the previous post.
Day 3 - Kingsbridge to Dartmouth
I woke early again as the sun came streaming through the window and the birds were singing. I had planned to do a short walk - supposed to take about 2 hours according to the leaflet - before setting off on the bus to Dartmouth. I ate my breakfast, thinking how lovely it was not to have to prepare it (not that my normal breakfast requires much in the way of preparation) and to get up and leave it all for someone else to clear away, vacated my room and arranged to leave my bag to be picked up on my return from the walk and set off.
I fell at the first hurdle though as the telephone box I was meant to turn at was no longer where it should have been! Luckily I was able to ask a young woman taking her little girl to school and she pointed me in the right direction!
It was pleasant walking early in the day before the sun was too high and the heat of the day would have made it too uncomfortable.
Around here I was lost again but again fortunately I was able to ask directions.
Now I was on what the leaflet described as a "rocky lane" cut deep into the steep Devon banks with foxgloves and other wildflowers growing along the way. Along here I met a young woman with 3 dogs and we stopped to pass the time of day before I overtook her (one of the dogs was elderly otherwise I wouldn't have been able to walk faster than she could I'm sure!).
I turned left as the leaflet said and made my way down this steep and very rocky path glad I was wearing boots and not sandals! But yet again I wasn't where the leaflet said I should be. Luckily the young woman caught up with me and it seemed I would need to make my way back up the steep rocky slope to where I had gone wrong or I could curtail my walk, keep going the way I was and finish up back in Kingsbridge. As I could see I would not get back in time for the bus if I did try to finish the walk proper I decided to make my way back to the B&B, pick up my bag and call it a day!
Back in Kingsbridge the tide was well and truly in and the Quay did indeed look lovely! The bus I was to get was the number 93 to Dartmouth which was supposed to be particularly scenic. If you click on the link you can see a YouTube video about the route (I can't figure out how to add it other than as a link!) Bear in mind that I was taking the journey in the opposite direction to that of the video ie going towards Dartmouth rather than leaving from there.
It was indeed a scenic route ...
...with views of the sea across the green Devon countryside. Many of the fields were pale gold in the sunshine some ridged with mounds of cut grass drying in the sun to make hay, a few with bales already made and waiting to be collected and I saw some of the old fashioned rectangular bales we used to play on when I was a child and before the modern cylindrical ones became the norm - happy memories triggered of long hot summer days, air filled with golden dust and skin itchy from the scratches caused by the dried grass, of playing with binder twine, not the orange or blue nylon stuff but proper sisal twine, combing it and making it into plaits and so on. More often these days the harvest is bagged up into black plastic encased cylinders, reminiscent of the plain liquorice sweets in a bag of Bassetts liquorice allsorts which always got left till the last, containing haylage since haymaking is a high risk endeavour in our climate needing as it does a long enough spell of dry weather with sunshine to dry it properly otherwise it might spontaneously combust in the barn. The bus went along a narrow strip of land at Slapton which separates a freshwater lake from the sea - you can just see the road with the lake on its right in the photo above if you click on it to enlarge it. Had it been a bit cooler I would have liked to get the bus back later in the day and have a walk here but there was no shade and I knew it would be too hot. Slapton Sands is today a peaceful place but it wasn't always so and it is the site of a notorious exercise Operation Tiger which went tragically wrong back in 1944.
This is Blackpool Sands which is lovely, a privately owned beach which has kept the worst excesses of beach commercialism at bay apparently. It did look nice apart from the large car park filled with shining cars radiating heat in the hot sunshine!
Now we began the descent into Dartmouth.....
...and I got off the bus here.
Once again my B&B was up a hill and by now it was lunchtime so very hot work climbing the long steep (or so it seemed!) hill. Having arrived at the B&B I found my room was on the top floor up 4 flights of stairs - I should be fit by the time I finish with this trip!
This is my view. I settled in and had a welcome drink from the bottle of water provided before walking back to the town for a sandwich which I ate, along with the rest of the water, in the gardens near the waterfront. Having eaten I set off to explore the town - it is well known for being the home of the Britannia Royal Naval College an imposing building high above the town which we had passed in the bus. The town has many narrow streets with lots of art galleries and boutique shops along with the usual cafes and coffee shops.
There were interesting looking old buildings as you can see.
And it is steeped in history.
I wandered round to Bayards Cove and discovered that as the plaque says ...
... the Mayflower along with the ill fated Speedwell had set sail from Southampton but put in here for repairs to Speedwell and then both set sail for America from here but sadly the Speedwell was forced to turn back some 300 miles off Lands End as she was considered unseaworthy. There is also a fort just here which was built in the 16th century to protect the Quay.
Now a ruin it offers views of the bay like this which reminded me of Sandsfoot Castle near Weymouth which I have written about here..
This is perhaps the quintessential photo of Dartmouth showing the buildings across the harbour and the Royal Hotel built in the 17th century whose rooms will set you back over £200 per night for a double room with river view so not suited to my budget! Do check out the link though for more info on the area.
One of the narrow streets filled with little shops selling all sorts.
Having spent a very comfortable night and again slept like the proverbial log I was up early and packed and ready to leave straight after breakfast. I got talking over breakfast to a lovely couple, maybe in their sixties, who came from Brisbane and who were also leaving that morning and offered to drive me down to the Embankment where I would get my next bus of this jaunt. This was the garden where I ate lunch the day before looking lovely in the morning sunshine.
And the harbour again this time in the sunshine as it was morning rather than late afternoon. For more on Dartmouth click on the link
This time I was to get this bus the Stagecoach Gold to Torquay. You will note the bars on the front of the top deck - most of the double deckers in the area had these and you could see why when we plunged into tree tunnels and under overhanging branches! The top deck needed some form of protection from the trees - it can't do the paintwork much good! This bus was meant to be a little bit of luxury with hand stitched Italian leather seats and free wi-fi and I see from the webpage that Our chief executive Sir Brian Souter wanted to develop a product which
gave something back to our loyal customer base. Our research had
highlighted that key elements of the bus journey, including clean vehicles, friendly drivers, comfortable seats and pleasant surroundings contributed greatly to our customers overall journey experience.! Surely we could reasonably expect clean vehicles and comfortable seats on any bus?But maybe not.
Another pleasant route apart from long delays due to roadworks in Paignton - hope they get finished before the holiday season really gets into full swing.
I got off the bus at Torquay right outside Debenhams so I nipped in to make use of their facilities and took this photo from the window of the cafe - though I didn't buy anything to eat or drink.
I didn't have long to wait for the next bus on my itinerary the Number 11 to Teignmouth - take a ride with the video above. (How is it that I have managed to add this video when I couldn't the earlier one?)
It is considered another of the lovliest routes in Devon and so it seemed....
...here we cross a bridge over the railway line which, a little further along at Dawlish, was so badly damaged in the winter storms - hard to imagine today isn't it?!
I liked Teignmouth - it seemed a more genteel sort of seaside than Torquay and I bought a sandwich and a drink and sat by the sea with my lunch under the beady eye of a seagull who was hoping I might share with him!
Leaving Teignmouth an hour or so later I got the last bus of my trip to
Exeter this time our route at times was close to the Exe estuary.
Not long now till I reached Exeter where I had time for a cup of tea in John Lewis before making my way to the station for the train home. The journey which had taken me about 4 hours on 3 different buses a few days earlier took me just an hour on the train and Mr M was waiting at the station to pick me up.
I had thoroughly enjoyed my few days on my own in a stunning part of England with the added bonus of wall to wall sunshine and I can't wait to go again sometime. I came home fired with interest in finding out more about the places I'd been and things I'd seen. There was so much I now wanted to know and of course it not being far distant I can always go back another time to visit those places I wish I had been able to spend more time in. I already plan to visit Dartington Hall again, to explore more of the beautiful grounds, for the day - and if I don't go by bus maybe Mr M will join me too.
Was there anything I'd do differently? Well for a start I will buy a smaller, lighter backpack and cut right down on what I take - just a couple of pairs of clean knickers and a toothbrush perhaps! I might stay in one place and go off out for days, if I can decide on somewhere to be based which has a good bus service to plenty of other places, as then I wouldn't have to carry the bag so much of the time and maybe I'd spend more time on foot and less on the bus another time but otherwise not really - I love the adventure of going by bus and it appeals to my penny pinching nature to be doing it for nothing with my bus pass! Why would I want the worry of passports and insurance, flights delayed or cancelled, air traffic control strikes, foreign currency, language problems and so on when I can holiday right here? It is a greener way to travel and my carbon footprint is kept to a minimum (I also got 5% of the price of my room at the Dartmoth B&B since I had not come by car!). I love double decker bus travel when you can see over the tops of hedges, into peoples gardens and go to places you'd never visit by car and to let someone else do the driving whilst just sitting back and enjoying the ride is my idea of bliss. I found everyone so friendly and helpful too so here's to the next BBB trip. If I get another trip worked out I might be able to fit in a September break perhaps before the evenings draw in and the days become short. Now where is that map and those timetables?! Want to come with me?!
