The next day my packed lunch was again missing – but Ellie sorted it out again!
All the groups took a coach to a place called Barna Barrow quite high up on the moor. It started quite misty and damp but cleared up quite soon. At one point we had a view across to Lynmouth and Lynton.
We continued on to Countisbury and had a quick look at the church. There were swallows and I think some martins flying around there, which was lovely. From there we continued down across the moor.
We headed towards Watersmeet, through woods and along a steep, narrow and twisting path. Unfortunately one gentleman slipped off the path and rolled about 20 metres or so down the slope – which was very steep – eventually being stopped by a tree. We were initially not sure how seriously he was hurt, but the leader climbed down to him and very slowly, in stages, he managed to get back up to the path. He had lost his glasses but managed to walk down to Watersmeet House, where we sat on the picnic tables and had a cup of tea as he recovered.
It was then on to Lynmouth, fairly slowly because of the man who had no glasses. He actually did really well to continue at all. On the way we passed a tree with a large number of coins stuck in it – why??
Lunch was beside the river on the approach to Lynmouth. Some people then walked on to the Valley of the Rocks, but I just went into Lynmouth and looked at what I think was the old lighthouse and the harbour before looking at the exhibitions about the Lynmouth flood and about the Lynmouth lifeboat.
Then it was time to go on the water-powered cliff railway.
It always seems to me so clever to have thought of the idea of using water and the weight of one car to pull up the other car – simple when the idea is there!
The water goes in at the top and is released at the bottom. I think it is part of a river that was flowing down and was just harnessed for the railway. I did have to go up on it, of course.
When at the top I had a fairly quick look round Lynton and admired the views before walking back down to Lynmouth, buying a batch of postcards and finding somewhere to sit and have a cup of tea – not that easy on a Sunday. It was then time to get the coach back to the hotel. I was glad I didn’t have to navigate Porlock Hill driving a coach!
Back at the hotel it was time to get ready for dinner where I had a lovely roast beef with lots of vegetables. After dinner we played skittles – one ball each and 3 lives, with handicaps in later rounds as there were a lot of people and it would have taken too long any other way. Quite an amusing evening!
So? A good day – except for the man who fell…..