Josie Travels

Recommended route: Lynmouth to Combe Martin – 13.7 miles
My route: Lynmouth to Watermouth – 14.7 miles (but I took a bus the last mile)

This was a good day of hiking! Yes, my feet were so badly blistered and swollen that I couldn’t fit them into my boots so I had to wear socks and sandles instead, and it had one of the most savage descents and ascents of the entire coast path… but it was pretty! Some nice rocks..!?

In all seriousness, I was speechless when I arrived at the Valley of Rocks. I had no idea that the Devon coastline could be as dramatic and beautiful as Cornwall!? Serves me right for spending most of my childhood on the south Devon coast instead of the north. This section was s t u n n i n g and I had the best time frolicking along the easy path looking at the impossibly turquoise water.

Until I reached the first big valley. I stopped at the bottom for lunch and a paddle in the river, missed my opportunity to refill my water, ran out by the time I reached the top of the climb, and it only got worse. I was dreading the Great Hangman – highest point of the coast path at 1,043 feet – and the killer climb that I would face to get there.

So I cheated. Thanks to Maps.Me it’s actually so easy to find alternative hiking routes, and I took a long but flat detour through a bunch of fields and farmland, only got lost once and had to climb over a barbed wire fence, before making it back to the path, at the top of Great Hangman. I’d call that a success.

I skipped Little Hangman completely because honestly, I coudln’t care less at that point. I was exhausted, in pain, no water or food, and I just wanted to get to the village. I treated myself to fish and chips, sat on the beach, and eventually caught a bus to my campsite a mile up the road in Watermouth.

I was camped next to a field of goats and bunnies in Watermouth Valley, and I spent yet another rest day here because my feet just were not healing. In fact, they were getting much worse. At least I got to spend the day in a pub this time, still writing my dissertation… 🙃

You can view the full itinerary here.

If you would like to see more photos, you can view the full album here.

You can also follow the journey on Instagram!