Last week I walked another section of the South West Coast Path. Back in 2021 just as we were emerging from lockdown, my friend Jill and I walked from St Ives to Lands End, in 2022 Hayle to Newquay and last year Minehead to Coombe Martin. Last week we set off from Coombe Martin to walk the 42 miles to Instow.

The day before we had travelled down to Ilfracombe as we had agreed that Coombe Martin had little to offer as an overnight stay. As it worked out we would stay in Ilfracoombe for two nights as we were unable to get accommodation in Woolacoombe at the end of our first day walking. There would be a bit of toing and froing on the local bus for the first couple of days.

It’s years since I last visited Ilfracoombe. It felt rather tired with a number of hotels now closed and falling into disrepair. It didn’t help that the weather was a bit grey when we arrived. Shortly after our arrival two coaches of elderly travellers arrived at our hotel. We suddenly felt like youngsters although I’m sure the age gap wasn’t that great.

The next morning we took the bus to Coombe Martin to start our first day of walking to Woolacoombe. 14 miles along a path that was described as moderate to strenuous. The first section took us back to Ilfracoombe. Along a path that felt familiar giving us spectacular views of the coast.

As we approached Ilfracoombe we came to the first challenging ascent up to Beacon Point for a magnificent view of Ilfracoombe. And then a descent into the town bathed in sunshine. It felt as if we were in a different town.

We bought our lunch to eat further along the path. A large Cornish Pasty for me. We were mindful that we had to get to Woolacoombe to catch the last bus of the day at 6pm so we kept walking.

Not unexpectedly, finding the path out of Ilfracoombe wasn’t as easy as finding our way in. It took a visit to Tourist Information to get us back on track.

The next section of the path took us to Lee Bay where a lot of renovation was taking place. Here the path started to get strenuous. I had misunderstood the grading of the path between Ilfraccoombe to Woolacombe: easy to moderate; strenuous west of Lee Bay. I’d assumed that the it was only the west of Lee bay that would be strenuous but it meant the whole of the next section would be strenuous. About 5 miles. So steep ascents that challenged the heart and lungs and descents that challenged the knees and balance. But it was familiar. And the views made it all worth while.

We walked pass the Bull Point Lighthouse and round Morte Point before catching our first glimpse of Woolacoombe beach.

As we approached the road running through Woolacoombe we looked to see where we would catch the bus back to Ilfracoombe. Unfortunately, Google maps may suggest catching the bus at a certain point but there is no physical evidence that a bus stop actually exists but we did eventually find one.

The following morning we returned to Woolacoombe to start our second day of walking. We were looking forward to the next two days as we were walking along a section that was described as ‘easy’. We’d never walked an ‘easy’ section before. We were anticipating gentle undulations as we enjoyed the views.

First a walk along the length of Woolacoombe Beach. As we walked the sun came out which was fortunate as I was starting to suspect that I’d dressed a little optimistically.

Woolacoombe Beach then merges into Putsbouough Beach before leaving the sand to walk along a high level path to Baggy Point at the end of the headland. Then a lower path to Croyle Beach where we enjoyed an almond croissant and an iced latte. Then a walk across the beach before the contours of Saunton Down into Saunton.

The walk so far had been living up to expectations but this wasn’t going to last.

Maybe we should have taken more notice of another walker that we had spoken to earlier in the day who was considering getting the bus from Saunton to Braunton, bypassing the sandunes of Braunton Burrows. Why would you want to do that? They sound delightful. We soon found out.

The coast path leaves the beach of Saunton, takes you up a road and then along the side of a golf course to a pedestrian road/path called the American Road due to its military past. No sign of the coast. Just a long relentless walk in fairly uninspiring countryside. Eventually we came to its end only to start a grim walk along an estuary.

So much for an easy walk. My heart and lungs may have found it easy but walking for miles on a hard road with a heavy backpack was taking its toll on my feet and legs. By the time we arrived at the guest house in Braunton my body felt more broken than it had after the previous ‘strenuous’ day.

It was an unusual feeling. We both regretted walking that section of the path. I’ve since read the experiences of other walkers. Whilst some put a positive spin on it, others comment on how horrible and boring it is or just take the decision to bypass it altogether.

We weren’t optimistic for our third and final day. Firstly, the weather forecast was rain all day. And it was another walk along an estuary.

But the day started dry. The weather forecast was now for rain later.

The path from Braunton to Barnstable follows a the line of a former railway track. It is also a cycle track so you have to keep an ear out for the sound of bells. The path runs along the Taw Estuary which looked a little more attractive as we started our walk.

We seem to cover the 5 miles to Barnstable in record time. We had planned to have lunch there but instead we settled for a coffee and set off again. The aim being to miss the rain. But not before a couple of false starts getting back onto the path.

The next section of the Coast Path is shared with The Tarka Trail, a 180 mile, walking and cycling trail circling North Devon and Exmoor. It features the longest, traffic-free cycle route in the UK.

How I wished I’d been cycling.

Again the path is along a former railway track with the station at Fremington Quay having been renovated to provide a cafe and information point. I’m sure if the sun was out we would have hung around for a bit longer but we were now getting rained upon and still had another 4 miles to walk.

We got to Instow at about 2.30. We were wet. But we did have the best meal of our trip in The Boathouse.

So another 42 miles of the SW Coast Path ticked off. Only another 490 to go.

The Highs:

The path between Coombe Martin and Saunton is glorious. Wonderful views of the coast. Parts of it are strenuous but that’s the price you pay to get to the viewing points.

We met some interesting people along the route. One young girl who was doing 200 miles of the path for charity. Her mother was supporting her along the way travelling between stops in a campervan. So not for her the weight of a backpack but this did free her up to run part of it. And an older woman, we never got round to asking her age, who was just doing it because she could.

The Lows

The path between Saunton and Instow is uninspiring and although graded easy it is not easy on the feet when laden with a heavy backpack. We concluded that there are some parts of the path that aren’t worth doing.

I have always considered myself a fast walker but we were overtaken by all the other walkers on the path. Time to up my cadence.

The weather. The forecast had been good for the whole week. Fortunately I always pack my waterproofs just in case. Just as well as on the 2nd day the forecast changed for Day 3. Rain all day. Fortunately, that was also wrong. The rain held off until lunchtime.