More Devon

Totnes Tuesday 19

Just look at this map for a bit:

 

That was actual weather that really happened. Even Scotland has sun, in fact the temperature later that day where I was had been high twenties and Inverness had been recorded at 26 and London at 33!
My Airbnb in Totnes was informal with the bonus of another interesting and very talkative guest called Jeff staying, plus my room had an enormous amount of shelves. I often stay places looking for the slightest hint of a shelf to put the phone on or wash bag or a cup on, but usually it's just the floor. Here the shelves were 3 to 4 rows high and on most walls.  Home is where your bookshelf is, ask any traveler.
   I had planned to going to Salcombe the next day but Jeff said he would be going on a walk to the nearby Dartington Hall along the river Dart and did I want to come along, so that's what I did. It was a lovely day and a lovely walk, Jeff is an ex Journalist and now film producer from New Zealand was able to tell lots of interesting stories. He was staying down in Totnes as a nice place to write and divided his time between London, California and New Zealand. In the evening Jeff and host Thomas would  engage in debates about various things.  Thomas was pleased I hadn't gone to Salcombe as he had mentioned Dartington Hall before and that I should visit it and besides Salcombe is just a posh place with posh people.

Dartington Hall near Totnes

Wednesday 20

Today I went to Salcombe to see how posh it was and to see if it was anything like how I remembered, I had been ages ago with family and family friends and we went out in our tiny foldable boat and I remember being a bit scared when we got near the entrance of the harbour as it was a 6 foot boat and we seemed very small and not the greatest of sailors. Being prepared for a lot of traffic I didn't want to go into town so I thought I would park at East Soar as described in the National Trust book as a good parking alternative and then walk along the coast to Overbecks National Trust property and then into town. Only I couldn't get to East Soar, the only road there was blocked with road works and a sign that said 'Road works  delay 15 minutes', I backed up round the corner up the hill before anyone else could block me in, the Google machine seemed to have found another route, foolishly I followed it, down another single track, past a no exit sign and into a track with grass in the middle that clearly wasn't a road anymore, so once again I backed up and went back the way I just came to Malborough. I passed the original route to find cars hopelessly backed up with still no end to the delay. With no other options I drove to Salcombe where upon on top of the hill a perfectly good and very accessible car park on the left, which much relief I parked and paid the all day parking fee of £2.
   I walked down the hill into town, I wasn't tempted to stop for anything as I had everything I needed with me,  besides there was nowhere to stop, it was crowded people fulfilling their duty of eating because it was 1pm, it seemed frenzied. Plus the occasional SUV trying to escape the harbour car park and push its way up the high street. I walked on through past the Seasalt and Cath Kidman shops and others that all sold similar things and past the invisible barrier that most people don't go beyond and round the bays and after some time to Overbecks. As I had walked up and down dale to get there I now rewarded myself with a cream tea in relaxed, quiet surroundings.
Overbecks is  the home of scientist Otto Overbeck, he invented something called the Rejuvenator - an electrotherapy device  that delivered very small doses of electrical current to parts of the body where there was said to be an electrical imbalance. The house was a pleasure to walk round too, not too big and in the main hall is a secret door in the paneling that leads through to another room. After Overbecks I continued my original plan but in reverse and walked along the dramatic coast to near East Soar and then back in a sort of loop to Overbecks and returned via some back paths bypassing the town and arriving neatly back at the car park again. 
I had walked several miles again and so onto Plymouth my next port of call.

Salcombe

Cliff walk to East Soar