Guidebook to Devon's coast to coast walk, incorporating the Two Moors Way and Erme-Plym Trail and crossing Devon from Wembury Bay in the South Devon AONB on the south coast to Lynmouth in the north coast, passing through Dartmoor and Exmoor: 116 miles through remote and beautiful countryside. Ideal for a week's holiday.
Seasons
May for bluebells and wild garlic in the hedgebanks; August for purple heather and bright yellow gorse on the moors; late October for glorious reds and oranges in valley woodlands and Exmoor's famous beech hedgebanks
Centres
Wembury, Yealmpton, Ivybridge, Holne, Widecombe-in-the-Moor, Chagford, Drewsteignton, Morchard Road, Morchard Bishop, Black Dog, Witheridge, Knowstone, Hawkridge, Withypool, Simonsbath, Lynmouth
Difficulty
A moderate undulating walking route, made tougher by dividing it into fewer sections to give longer days; conditions underfoot may be muddy after wet weather, and a detour required on the Hawkridge-Withypool section in times of flood; waymarking is good other than on the moorland sections; when the cloud is down the use of map and compass is essential on the unavoidable Ivybridge-Holne section
Must See
Wembury Bay and Marine Centre, South Devon AONB, South West Coast Path Dartmoor: granite tors, medieval tinworking, Bronze Age archaeology, Dartmoor ponies, Teign Gorge, Castle Drogo Devon's Heartland: farms, fields, woodland… rural Devon at its best Exmoor: Tarr Steps, Barle Valley, Simonsbath: heart of the ancient Forest of Exmoor, Exmoor ponies, red deer
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Overview
Guidebook to Devon's Coast to Coast route. The route is a combination of the well-established Two Moors Way with the Erme-Plym Trail. The route is described south to north, from Wembury on the south coast, up through Dartmoor and mid-Devon, through Exmoor to Lynmouth overlooking the Bristol Channel. The 116 mile route typically takes a week to walk, but suggestions are included for alternative more leisurely schedules.
While thousands of visitors flock to Devon every year, few leave the honeypots and coast, so walkers on the Two Moors Way are treated to beautiful and remote countryside, far from the crowds. The 116 mile route winds north from the coast, up past Ivybridge into the wilds of Dartmoor, where the path crosses the upper course of the River Dart, and passes through Dunstone Down and Chagford. The way through mid-Devon visits Witheridge and Knowstone before climbing onto Exmoor and into Somerset, before reaching the sea.
This guidebook combines clear route descriptions and OS map extracts with plentiful practical details on each stage of the route as well as advice on accommodation, facilities, and how to travel to and from the Way. Also included is a wealth of detail on the history, geology and wildlife along the way, as well as noting points of interest to enhance your walk.
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Contents
Contents
Introduction
History of the route
Geology and landscape
Wildlife
When to go
Planning the walk
Accommodation
Public transport
Maps
Getting there and getting away
What to take
Food and drink
Health and safety
Mobile phones and emergencies
Waymarking and access
Using this guide
The Route
Stage 1 Wembury to Yealmpton
Stage 2 Yealmpton to Ivybridge
Stage 3 Ivybridge to Holne
Stage 4 Holne to Dunstone Down
Stage 5 Dunstone Down to Chagford Bridge
Stage 5A Dunstone Down to Chagford Bridge (low-level route)
Stage 6 Chagford Bridge to Morchard Road
Stage 7 Morchard Road to Witheridge
Stage 8 Witheridge to Knowstone
Stage 9 Knowstone to Tarr Steps
Stage 10 Tarr Steps to Simonsbath
Stage 11 Simonsbath to Lynmouth
Appendix A Route summary table
Appendix B Facilities along the Way
Appendix C Selected accommodation
Appendix D Useful contacts
Appendix E Stamp stations
Appendix F Further reading -
Updates
Receive updates by email
Be notified by email when this book receives an update or correctionAugust 2015
Page 49
Paragraph 1 “Head across the next field passing a footpath post” This was not clear as the crops had grown up and the sign was in the middle of a field in the middle of the crops and only seen from another angle which was not apparent when needed.
Paragraph 3 “just before Bowden Farm turn right on a footpath, descending steeply” (this should be opposite Bowden Farm turn left)
Page 54 Road is not the A3121 but minor road off it. Change to 'Cross a minor road…'
Pg 156- the flood was in 1952 not 1932.
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Reviews
Whether you choose to use this book as a supplement to planning only, or as part of your navigation package for this walk, give it a go, and I hope that you enjoy the walk as much as I did!
Andrew Hoskins, Backpack Magazine
Walking The Two Moors Way, Devon’s Coast to Coast is a practical, pocket sized guidebook from seasoned outdoors writer, photographer and walker Sue Viccars. Her detailed knowledge and love of the 116 mile route from Wembury on the Channel shore to Lynmouth on the Exmoor coast route is manifest throughout.
This guide sensibly divided into eleven day long stages, each headed with a box of key information detailing the start and finish; the distance and likely time required to achieve it; refreshments, toilets, transport, parking, accommodation and maps needed. Readers are given directional notes on the route, which are brief but sufficient though given that it is waymarked. These notes are supported by sections of Ordnance Survey 1:50,000 Landranger maps. However, anyone walking the route would be wise to take the more detailed 1:25,000 Explorer with them.
Sue Viccars has added copious additional information in her extended introduction, covering such practical questions as food and drink, planning the walk and public transport. She has also added sections on history and geology and more varied information on points of interest along the way. This is interspersed among the directions, but in different type, making it easy to separate the two.
Indeed, the book could be used as an armchair journey along the path, especially as it is backed by attractive colour photographs, though it is obviously intended as a practical guide for walkers en route. It certainly fulfils its purpose.
Robert, June 2015
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Sue Viccars
After gaining a degree in Geography and Archaeology at Exeter University Sue Viccars worked for a London map publisher before grabbing the chance to return to Devon, where she spent 20 years commissioning walking, equestrian and countryside books for David & Charles Publishers. She received her first walking book commission three weeks after going freelance in 2000 and since then has written or contributed to around 20 books (and edited dozens more), specialising in her home territory of southwest England, with particular reference to Dartmoor and Exmoor. She writes the walks for Exmoor: the country magazine, and has been editor of Dartmoor Magazine since 2008.
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