Bideford to Westward Ho!

Bideford to Westward Ho! - Monday 4th April 2011

Path Facts - Length: Approx 6.5 miles, Ascent: 430 feet

Woke up early with the noise from the road. Busier in the town today but registering that it was Monday wasn’t immediate. 8am breakfast then checked out to start walking before 9 am. Could be a record.

A few provisions were obtained in Bideford as we didn’t entirely trust the water in the hotel. The path meanders through the suburbs of Bideford for a while. Then after awesome bridge we were clearly in the posh end of town.

Barnstaple to Bideford

Barnstaple to Bideford - Sunday 3rd April 2011

Path Facts - Length: Approx 10 miles, Ascent: 100 feet (est)

8.30am breakfast then packed the overflow bags in the car. Crossways had kindly let us park at the B&B for a few days as we were staying both Thurs and Sat nights. Started walking about 9.30am through Barnstaple town across to the river.

Showers were promised for today which was necessary to ‘stress test’ Andy’s new lightweight goretex which had only been field tested in the dry before this.

The route heads out over Long Bridge in Barnstaple then goes through what I expect will be a contender for one of the least scenic stretches of path but still had repeater signs in the form of acorn stickers on lampposts. We still managed to miss a huge blue sign with Bideford written on it whilst engaged in conversation and doubled back slightly after some embarrassingly obvious directions from a patient local.

Croyde to Barnstaple

Croyde to Barnstaple - Saturday 2nd April 2011

Path Facts - Length: Approx 14.4 miles, Ascent: 420 feet

8.30am breakfast at The Thatch which was excellent then started walking about 9.30 am. The first challenge was yomping through the dunes to get to the beach. It was already sunny today and probably the warmest day of this leg.

Ilfracombe to Croyde

Ilfracombe to Croyde - Friday 1st April 2011

Path Facts - Length: Approx 13.6 miles, Ascent: 3002 feet

We both arrived at Crossways B&B in Barnstaple on the Thursday night about 7pm. Battle plans were laid out on a table in the Rolle Quay Inn & discussed over a couple of pints of Tribute, who may turn out to be the unofficial sponsors of this tour. A 7.30am breakfast alongside a few travelling businessmen then we walked through the town to sample the ambience of Barnstaple bus station and caught the No 3 to Ilfracombe.