Torquay to Dartmouth to Totnes

Welcome to Torquay. It isn't Nice!

Our accommodation has let us & others down with their lack of WIFI service. We expect it has been an ongoing problem for the hosts, but as guests frequently come & go, so too does the problem.

A bad night! I expect the 8+ hours of weaving through country lanes upset my balance because the adverse effects of motion sickness played havoc with my system until the early hours of this morning. I managed a little sleep & awoke 'motionless,' but not for long! We were off on the Dart Valley Steam Train from Paignton  to Dartmouth, a cruise on the  Dart River to Totnes returning to Torquay by bus, filled our day. As I write I'm thinking of Jack Smith & his love of locomotives, and Jennie. The steam engine, Lydham Manor, oozed romance of a bygone era. The hypnotic pulse of the engine was only interrupted by the occasional release of steam & the accompanying shrill of the whistle. The experience was much too short.    

Dartmouth, once a fishing village, was bursting with character & charm. Cottages resembling oversized beach-boxes are stacked down the slopes to water's edge of the Dart Estuary. Despite the inclement weather, coffee shops & restaurants were overflowing with patrons and the streets were bustling with shoppers and visitors. Once a major fishing village, with the waters all but fished out, only two fishing licences are issued each year. These are highly sought after. Once boasting a prosperous shipbuilding industry, Dartmouth now only repairs customs & excise vessels.

The cruise from Dartmouth to Totnes introduced the filming location from the television series 'The Onedin Line'. Now secluded by woods, we glimpsed the home once occupied by the mistress of murder, Agatha Christie. I wonder if the Lydham Manor was her inspiration for the Orient Express events she wrote about. Sir Walter Raleigh once lived in the area. His boathouse is now used as a private residence.

Totnes nestles into the hills of South Devon. Today the residents were celebrating the Queen's Jubilee. There was much merriment as a flotilla passed the cheering community lining the river bank. A fair added to the carnival atmosphere of the festivities. Once home to a shipbuilding industry, Totnes now provides dry yacht storage.