South West England – Coast, Countryside & National Parks

SOUTH WEST ENGLAND INTRODUCTION
South West England has long been a favourite tourist destination. The West Country, with its narrowing peninsula pointing to marvellous Atlantic sunsets, inspires a greater sense of Island Britain than anywhere else. Here is a land of legend and wilderness defined by its villages and country towns rather than by great cities and urban sprawl (excepting Bristol, Exeter and Plymouth). Here also is a land of fruitful vales and wooded hills. Choose with care as this is an area which can boast a huge diversity of stunning scenery. In the east are the grandest standing stones of all not far from the soaring spire of Salisbury; Dorset’s serene, rolling acres culminate southwards in a shoreline of unremitting enchantment; and Somerset’s bleak Levels are punctured by islands wreathed in the mists of time. Beyond, the West Country embraces Devon’s lush pastures sandwiched between Exmoor’s deeply riven heights and the craggy, tor-crowned, granite pile of Dartmoor. A succession of granite heights are bordered by ever smaller Celtic field systems to end at rugged Land’s End and the almost ‘Mediterranean’ flower fields of the Isles of Scilly.

HISTORY & HERITAGE
This is an area which retains strong elements of ancient civilisations that were overtaken but never submerged by successive conquests. Here legend and history are one – King Arthur at Tintagel, Joseph of Aramathea at Glastonbury and Alfred’s cakes somewhere deep in the Somerset bogs. At Bath the Romans cleansed themselves in the most elegant of baths, but it is the sea which is the great element that makes the West Country the heart of maritime England. From these shores came the great adventurers of Elizabethan England – Raleigh, Grenville and, most famously, Drake, whose legacy lives on not only in immortal bowls but also beneath the waves where skeletons of the Spanish Armada still await full exploration. Bristol is synonymous with the slave and tobacco trade and continued to flourish as a great port when Brunel brought the GWR from London. Recent history in the far west has left reminders of a mining industry in the form of gaunt, stark, chimneys which neatly mirror the standing stones of the first settlers.

CUSTOMS & CULTURE
Whilst Uncle Tom Cobbly et al ride out into the Dartmoor mists from Widecombe in the Moor and the Floral Dance ranges round the streets of Helston and the ‘Obby’ horse has almost become a form of local transport, we must pay homage to one of the richest cultural areas in Britain. Gainsborough lived and worked in Bath and Joshua Reynolds, later to become the first president of the Royal Academy, was born at Plympton just outside Plymouth at Saltram House, itself an architectural masterpiece and home of several of his finest portraits. In the late 19th century increasing numbers of British artists found their way towards the glorious light of Cornish fishing ports. The landscape has inspired many writers such as Thomas Hardy, R.D. Blackmore, Daphne du Maurier, Charles Kingsley and Le Carre, so the literary tradition carries on and on.

LANDSCAPES & LANDFORMS
The further the west one goes the more wild and desolate the scenery. In the east are the open flowing plains above Salisbury and nearby are the famously historical Uffington Horse and Cerne Abbot giant strikingly carved into the dazzling chalk. The coastal landscape of Dorset between Poole Harbour and Weymouth is, without question, some of the finest coastline in Britain with Durdle Door (a natural arch) and Lulworth Cove supreme. Areas of high ground are like islands amongst the tailored fields, such as: the slight, smooth Polden Hills and the Blackdown Hills of Somerset, the bulky Mendips breached by fabulous gorges, such as the renowned Cheddar Gorge, riddled beneath by wondrous caves, the most famous of which is Wookey Hole; the tawny Quantocks; and the high, wild expanses of Dartmoor, Exmoor, and Bodmin Moor. Virtually the entire coastline, especially Cornwall, is magnificent with wind-blown sandy bays and dunes interspersed with high cliffs of awesome presence. Kynance Cove is not only beautiful but is part of a unique suite of rocks which form the tip of the Lizard Peninsula.

PLACES TO VISIT & EVENTS
Bristol provides an excellent northern hub for the region and the newly- renovated docks and ancient ships, including the SS Britain, are well worth spending time around. Admire Brunel’s Clifton Suspension bridge high above the Avon. Wonderful museums depicting much of England’s maritime heritage abound. Nearby, Wookey Hole and Cheddar Gorge provide wonderful examples of Mother Nature’s art. Wells cathedral is set marvellously against the Mendip backdrop. Glastonbury Tor, rising out of the Somerset Levels, is wreathed in history and mystery. Salisbury, providing Constable’s memorable spire, Stonehenge, Avebury, Cerne and Dorchester should all be visited en route to Dorset’s stunning coast. Exeter Cathedral and the surrounding villages are gems and Brunel again enhances the scenery with his marvellous rail bridge at Saltash. Buckland in the Moor provides ‘chocolate box’ houses below Dartmoor’s jewel-studded summits. Exmoor, Watersmeet , Lynton, Lynmouth and Clovelly crown the northern coast. Cornwall’s north coast is often high and wild, but always magnificent.

SPORTS & LEISURE
500 miles of the South West Peninsula have been designated as a continuous Long Distance Footpath and nearly all is protected as a Heritage Coast. Exmoor, Bodmin Moor and Dartmoor offer a superb range of walking environments. Horse riding and pony trekking are easily accessible almost everywhere. World championship surfing can be found at Newquay and the sandy bays like Sennon Cove also offer fabulous sport. Windsurfing, boating and sailing are hugely popular especially along the south coast at places like Salcombe and Falmouth. All coastal towns offer a wide range of facilities including tennis and bowls. Cornish wrestling is still exhibited at many of the local shows and there is County cricket at Taunton. Diving is increasing in popularity where the clear waters of the Atlantic provide excellent conditions. Geologists are in heaven especially in the Lyme Regis and tin mining areas, whilst ornithologists find equal excitement in amongst the North Devon estuaries and the bird sanctuary of Lundy Island.