Remember: Press F11 for a full screen view of this page.
 

 

Loweswater to Countisbury

Date & start time: Saturday 25th and Sunday 26th September 2010.

Places visited : On a holiday to Devon via Camberley and Stonehenge.

Walk details : 1 ml, 200 ft ascent on our end of day walk.

Highest point : Foreland Point, 981 ft - 302 m.

Walked with : Ann and the dogs, Harry and Bethan.

Weather : Sunshine and summer clouds

Loweswater to Countisbury at EveryTrail


[ Alter the settings to zoom or change the Map, use Everytrail to download the Gps route ]

 

Even though we live in a nice place it doesn't stop us going away for a short holiday.

Today we are heading for Devon via our daughter's house in Camberley and tomorrow, Stonehenge.

We leave the lovely weather of the Lakes behind and hope for more of the same over the next week or so.

We stop at Rannerdale soon after the start of our journey in order to give the dogs a walk as they'll be in the car for the rest of the day.

I walked them over Hause Point and Ann walked the camera down by the lake shore of Crummock.

   
Scots Pine near Wood House.
The view across to Scale Force and Great Borne.

Dodd and Red Pike across the bay at the head of Crummock Water . . . nice memories to take with us as we head South.

- - - o o o - - -

Camberley Junior Rugby.

Alexander explains the purpose of the morning

to Harry and Bethan.

   
Alexander and our daughter Cathy next morning.
 

Time to get everyone kitted up.

The children at this age play tag-rugby so have a waistband with velcro tags stuck to it . . . pull the tag and the other person has to stop.

Alexander moving fast as one of the other guys chats to the coach / referee.

If you lose a tag you must wait till someone runs through your legs before you can start again.

Concentration.

- - - o o o - - -

After Sunday morning Rugby, Ann and I said our good-byes and set off west towards Devon.

Does it look familiar ? . . . an ancient monument by the side of the A303 . . . Stonehenge

We stop at the National Trust visitor centre and use the underpass to cross towards the stone circle.

Painted on one of the walls, an artist's impression of the stones at the height of their glory, some time between the years 3500 BC and 1500 BC.

That makes the structure certainly significantly more than 4000 years old.

From the pathway around the stones and not looking directly into the sun, there is a much clearer view of the structure.

Some of the stones have been brought over 240 miles from Pembrokeshire to this site but the largest Sarcen Stones are more local.

The site evolved over time and the area has several rings of earthworks as well as the circles of stones.

One of the ditches can be seen on the outside of the circle.

   
Mighty uprights with several horizontal cap stones.
The Heel Stone outside the circle and nearer the road.

An altogether impressive monument and one well worth visiting on our way West.

- - - o o o - - -

Nearing our destination we make another small diversion to the village of Dunster near Minehead.

This is the famous Dunster Yarn Market built around 1590 to shelter the cloth sellers and their goods on market days.

   
Dunster Castle, home of the Luttrell family of old.
One of the many shop fronts in the village.

I remember having a jigsaw puzzle of this view when I was a child . . . that's going back a bit now !

   
The final leg of our journey takes us into the County of Devon.
This is Exmoor so here's an Exmoor Pony.

The standing stone is a gate post opposite the toll house at County Gate.

The building is now a National Park visitor centre.

The dogs are more concerned with their image than looking at the nice view behind them

. . . or perhaps they are just waiting to be allowed out for a run around !

From closer to the road . . . the extensive view across to the South Wales coast.

Click here or on the photo above for a Loweswatercam 120 degree annotated panorama.

The Blue Ball Inn, Countisbury

An old Coaching Inn on the road to Lynmouth and our home for the next five nights.

After settling in, we took a short walk up to Foreland Point

to walk the dogs again but also to enjoy the view as the sun was setting.

A car transporter ship makes its way up sea lanes towards Bristol Docks as we look out across the Bristol Channel towards South Wales.

The high gropund is Rhossili Downs on Gower, just west of our old home of Swansea.

Keen eyes can see Worms Head just above the ship.

The start of sunset from Foreland Point

Click here or on the photo above for a fuller, Loweswatercam annotated panorama.

The sun starts to set over Lynton and Lynmouth.

The distant headland is presumably Bull Point west of Ilfracombe.

The wide expanse of a west coast sunset is a delight to see again.

Last light as the sun disappears below the horizon.

Back for supper at the Blue Ball.

One last view of the Inn before we turn in for the night.

- - - o o o - - -

 

Technical note: Pictures taken with either Ann's Canon 75 or my Canon G10 digital camera.

Resized in Photoshop, and built up on a Dreamweaver web builder.

This site best viewed with . . . dinner booked at a classic Coaching Inn.

Go to Top

© RmH.2010 # Email me here # or leave me a Guest Book Entry

Previous walk - 23rd September 2010 Blencathra with George Fisher

A previous time here - It's been twenty years since we were last in Somerset and Devon, so no photos on-line this time.

Next walk - A drive and walk around Lynton & Lynmouth