One thing I do love about Devon is the beautiful coastal walks. The South West Coast path offers breathtaking views of Devon and Dorset. One of my favourite walks is along the Jurassic Coast from Exmouth to Sidmouth.
I’ve walked the coast path in places from Exmouth to Sidmouth, Branscombe to Beer and Beer to Seaton. On a cold and windy Wednesday in November, I decided to take the dog out for a walk along the coast path from Otterton to Peak hill, Sidmouth. One of my favourite walks of the coast path, due to the stunning views across the bay, and how high up you can reach on the walk!
I started the walk in the quiet village of Otterton. There’s something about Otterton that I love, its a charming little village that has a mill (Otterton Mill) beside the River Otter. It is also the gateway to Ladram Bay, a popular holiday park, which the coast path passes through.
I walked up from Otterton School where I parked, towards the public footpaths that lead to Ladram Bay. For those of you, like myself, that enjoy a bit of geocaching, there are lots of caches dotted around Otterton and the surrounding footpaths to do. Some of these geocaches are circular walks, which can help you explore the area whilst caching.
I walked up through Otterton’s sports ground, towards public footpaths that then join a field full of cattle. From here you then get treated to the breathtaking views of Ladram Bay, famous for its rocks and stacks by the pebble beach. Heading towards Ladram Bay, on a clear day you can see Sidmouth, Branscombe, Beer and beyond to Dorset, including the highest point of the south west coast path: Golden Cap!
Once I reached Ladram bay, I followed the signs for the coastal path, going through another field, which then leads you into some woodland. Careful if you do this path on a wet day, as it can get very muddy! Looking back behind me, I took one last look at Ladram Bay, before climbing further into the woods.
Doing this walk in Autumn, treated me to a blanket of colourful trees in the woods of Peak hill, reminding me of why I love this season so much!
From here you can carry on to Sidmouth, but first, if you feel fit enough, I would highly recommend you climb up the hill and steep steps to High Peak. At the top there is a beacon with an information board next to it, about the history and archaeology of this area. From here, you can see panoramic views across East Devon and Dorset. Be sure to take time to look in all directions! One way shows the coast, the other shows beautiful countryside views!
Once I had stopped to take in all the stunning views, I continued on for a bit longer towards Sidmouth. With the rain clouds approaching from above, I decided not to continue all the way to Sidmouth, but I made sure to walk far enough to a view point that showed off the Jurassic Coast at its best, as well as getting a good view of Jacob’s ladder standing out on Sidmouth’s pebble beach.
I was glad we turned back towards Otterton when we did, as soon as we got to the car, the heavens opened! And it didn’t stop raining all day after that! One thing I do need to add about this walk, is that there are quite a few steep inclines throughout the coastal path. You can make the walk as long or as short as you want, if you’re feeling fit enough, you can start at Exmouth and walk to Sidmouth. This is a tiring, but very enjoyable walk along the Jurassic coastline. Some days I do park up at Ladram Bay and walk to Sidmouth from there, this is a shorter, quicker, but just as enjoyable walk. It’s also handy to note that parking at Ladram Bay holiday park is free during the winter months.
