Axmouth, Devon
Axmouth is the pretty little village you drive through on the way to Seaton on the coast of East Devon; at the end is the beautiful Axe Estuary, a good spot for twitchers with the wetlands and mudflats attracting a variety of migratory birds. It’s lovely to sit and watch the swans gliding along, oyster catchers and egrets pecking about, or to see the sunset on a warm summers evening.
Further along, just before you cross over the bridge into Seaton, is the harbour where you can see fishermen returning with their catch and go crabbing from the harbour wall. Time it right and you can call into Chris’ Café for a bacon butty and a cup of tea. Stroll out to the quiet beach at the end of the harbour to explore rockpools at low tide or to walk along the shore with the pet pooch (Axmouth Beach is dog friendly all year).
Up on the clifftop is Axmouth Golf Club, which welcomes visitors on the greens and in the clubhouse; this is also the start (or the end, depending on which way you approach it) of the Undercliff Nature Reserve, covering 7.5 miles to Lyme Regis. The South West Coast Path twists and turns through a landscape of towering cliffs, dense woodland and lush and scrambling vegetation; dotted among it are the ruins of old cottages that once stood here before landslips made them unsafe, a brick chimney that was part of a pumping station, and a historic sheepwash. If walking is your thing, you’ll love this because there’s nowhere else like it in the entire country – it’s like a different world, with an almost prehistoric feel at times.
When you drive back through the village, call into The Ship Inn for drinks in the beer garden, or for home made food to round off your day.