Exploring South Devon, England
This past month has been a busy one! We spent the entire month of September visiting Mark’s family in South Devon, England, and when I returned home, only a couple days later I was on a flight to a work conference in Florida. I just realized I haven’t blogged in a month – my longest hiatus since I started This Mama Loves Life. Oh well, life happens and gets in the way. Here are some memories from our time in the South West of England.
Mark grew up in the South Hams, a part of England I didn’t even know existed until he brought me for the first time and introduced me to his family about 8 years ago! It’s rolling hills, beautiful beaches, and quiet villages are what draw people from the rest of England for their holidays each year! It truly is a pretty place.
This was Hudson’s second trip to England, as we took him when he was only three months old. This trip was very different as he was now able to run around and explore to his heart’s desire. He especially loved time in the garden and at the beach. Anybody know when toddlers stop experimenting with eating sand? Oh man!
One of our favorite places to go when in South Devon is Hope Cove. The cliff-side village is so quaint, and the walk to Thurlestone Rock and beach is breathtaking. For September, we had pretty good weather. Not warm enough to swim, but those sunny days were a nice surprise during our trip!
When in England, a day at the races is a must! We love the excitement of cheering on our horse and watching them parade around the paddock. Hudson looked like quite the little gentleman in his race day attire! He loved all the action too!
Salcombe is another one of our favorite spots! It’s high street is full of unique shops, seaside restaurants, and the best clotted cream ice cream around! Hudson and his cousin Felix liked to watch the boats come in and out of the harbour.
We visited North Devon to see “Heluvagood” the family race horse. He looked in great shape, and we had a fun day at the trainer’s annual “Open Day” – there were plenty of Devon Pasties to eat and interesting people to talk to!
We attended the Christening of Mark’s friend’s son at this beautiful old church near Kingsbridge. It was a lovely day. You just don’t get old buildings and churches here in Canada like you do in England, that’s for sure!
Hudson became obsessed with apples. Mark’s parents have a couple of huge apple trees in their yard, and Hudson couldn’t get enough. I have to admit they were pretty tasty, and definitely organic!
We visited our friends who live in Exeter and went for a lovely lunch down by the river. They have a little baby and it was great to catch up with them and spend the day in this scenic town by the water.
There are so many beaches and coastal villages to explore in South Devon, but every time we visit, I keep wanting to go back to my favorites! For the first time we did the walk to Bolt Head from Hope Cove and the views (as well as the wind from the top) were incredible!
Gotta love an old Devon-style seaside cottage like this one below 🙂 There are some really great character homes everywhere you look. I also love that almost every little village has their own pub and church!
We spent a couple days in the Moors. Dartmoor is a national park that is dotted with exposed granite hilltops called “toors”. People come from all over to hike on the moors and take pictures of these ancient toors. I was more interested in the wild ponies that freely roam on the side of the road.
We stayed at our friend’s B&B which they just started up last year. Chris and Sue used to work on the cruise ship with us, so it was really neat to stay with them and catch up! Sue cooked up a delicious English breakfast in the morning too! Check out their place if you are ever in the area! The Cherrybrook Inn – Dartmoor
That’s it! We did so much more, including Pennywell Farm and the Paignton Zoo; but I’ll save that for another post about what to do in South Devon with kids! XO, Candice
