#Devon Blackdown Hills (Culmstock Beacon), Budleigh Salterton, Seatown Dorset and sea fishing!

I am a Devon lad - born and brought up in Exeter but I have lived away for the best part of 35 years - the last 28 of them on the lovely Isle of Wight (especially Seaview). My ties with Devon remain strong however - family and friends and I still feel an incredible draw to the place - a real affinity. Lately as I find myself returning to Exeter more, I am more and more aware of its spiritual significance to me - a sense of belonging there and a sense of roots and memories. I am a Devonian. Exeter is my team!

Devon is a massive county - and I am from South Devon - but not as deep as the South Hams. There is of course Dartmoor, and Exmoor in the north, the special and contrasting coastlines of north and south Devon, with their beautiful estuaries  and the wonderful green, rolling, agricultural mid Devon. Add to the that stunning Cornwall is on the doorstep!

So Devon has and will feature more and more in my life and how I use my leisure time. Last weekend I spent a long weekend down there and attach a few photos.

First of all I cycled up on to Culmstock Beacon. This is the Blackdown Hills - mid Devon - in fact on the Devon Somerset border. I came across a sign to Nicholashayne - the home of the Pipe racing stables (a blog on this fantastic trainer to come). The Blackdowns are not spectacular I guess - just wonderfully quiet, wonderfully unspoilt and beautiful.

Culmstock Beacon

Road block Culmstock style.

The next day I went down to Budleigh Salterton for some beach fishing. Budleigh is a retirement haven - a truly lovely spot on the South Devon coast with a shingle beach. To my families mirth I did not catch anything despite the big build up!

River Otter joins the sea at Budleigh

Budleigh Salterton

My eldest granddaughter is not squeamish with my rag worm bait!

The following day I had to return to the Island and made a planned stop at Seatown in Dorset which is part of the famous Jurassic coastline. The shingle beach is special - the tide breaking gently onto it but enough to rattle the rounded little pebbles making a mesmerising and relaxing sound. The cliffs here are spectacular to walk on.

I had excess bait from the day before - so I went fishing again. But the day was too sunny and therefore too easy to doze. Another blank but a fish would have been a bonus only!

Seatown shingle beach

Cows on the cliff edge

We are so lucky to have the scenery we have.