Tristan and I have really got the one night away in #devonheaven down to a T. We set off at 6am and were in Slapton by 11. We then stayed in Totnes and spent the following day mooching around it’s quirky independent shops. I love spending time in Totnes, just soaking up it’s unique atmosphere. It’s such a creative place, and the people are so energetic and enterprising, I’d love to live there some day.
So, first stop was Slapton. I’ve mentioned it in a post before- there is a bar that separates the sea from a fresh water lagoon. It’s an SSI, and there’s always fantastic bird and nature sites to be seen. Like this Clouded Yellow, for example. It’s a migrant, and May is right at the beginning of it’s flight season. I was so excited to see it, I’ve never spotted one before. I knew right from the off that it was a clouded yellow, but I used the butterfly conservation app to find out more, it also has a great ‘identify’ feature, if you ever are unsure.
I do, however, worry massively about this site. Recent storm damage washed away the road that ran across the bar, it’d be a disaster if the bar itself was washed away, the unique habitat of the freshwater lagoon would be ruined. The damage can be viewed here: https://www.devonlive.com/news/devon-news/watch-storm-damage-destroys-waterfront-1297684
Following our trip to Slapton we drove inland to Totnes where we stayed at The Old Forge. I’d highly recommend it, it was very clean, very comfy and the owner was lovely. We went out for some food and drink on the waterfront.
The following morning, we wandered around Totnes early before the crowds.
Note – the GWR train pulling in to the station – Totnes is easily reached by train. Following our wandering we stopped for coffee at the Green Cafe – they do fantastic food and cakes – and lots of vegetarian options.
I always like to catch up on local news whenever i’m down in Totnes..!
Finally we headed over to Coleton Fishacre before heading home. They have beautiful gardens with a stream running through. The stream runs all the way down to the cliffs where it drops off in a waterfall. The South West Coast Path can also be accessed from the very bottom of the garden. The flowers were beautiful, but it was such a hot day, we couldn’t make the most out of it as we were so focused on diving from shady spot to shady spot.
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