Lundy Island

                                                Tuesday 29^th August 2017

 

Honeycomb oozing delicately flavoured honey was a breakfast delight at our B and B, Bideford Beehives. It was one of the best places we’ve stayed all thanks to Lesley and her bee enterprise. Tucked away from the main road by a private track just off the roundabout marked for Appledore,  it’s easy to miss.

It was drizzling with rain and very fresh, disappointingly as Bank Holiday Monday had been so hot. The boat was due to leave at 10.30 and we were told to be there 45 minutes before. We parked in a long stay car park for £3 not far from the quay in Bideford then looked for a Baker’s for something for lunch. It was just after 9 and it took a while to find somewhere selling food. There must have been plenty of places but we didn’t pass any the route we took.

We took our pizza and pie ( the best we could do) and stood in a queue already more than 50 people long. To our right was the medieval, many arched Long Bridge spanning the Torridge. Below the quay was our boat the Oldenburg, wooden and at least 30 years old. We looked at the gathering ticket holders and wondered how we would all fit in such a small ship. It will hold 267. The captain said later that there were 266 on board apart from the crew.

After nearly an hour we slowly crocodile onto the deck and if we are lucky we sit on the wooden slatted seats but some had the floor or had to stand. Perhaps people spread out more than they should. The floor was wet with the rain and one lady slipped on the stairs, landing at the bottom. She seemed Ok though.

We sat under cover on the lower deck. It was cold after a while and very windy. Blankets were handed round but there weren’t enough for everyone.

People kept passing by with bacon butties from the café below deck. The smell was tantalising!

We slowly moved down the estuary by coastal properties and sand beaches and as we came into the Bristol Channel the boat began to gently roll. The sun came out and the grey sky began to blue over the further out we went. Lundy is 10 miles out.

 We sat next to a chatty lady who pointed out her husband and fellow competitors in a boat race. Small red boats with red sails caught the wind, occupants grateful after being becalmed for days.

A unison of “Ooh”s and” Ah”s  heralded the arrival of a dolphin. We saw the tail as it went back under the waves.

The 2 hours went by slowly for me and our seats seemed to be in a wind tunnel. Normally Bob and I play cards but this wasn’t possible. The ship’s movement had me concentrating on not feeling sick.

We had no frontal view but out the side we could see the thin granite island. We came in by Rat and Mouse Islands and on the rocks lounged several seals. Arriving a bit later than expected and then the crew taking a long time deciding where to put the gang plank it was nearly 1pm when the bottlenecking passengers were eventually off the boat. A steady stream of people snaked up and up the newly made track towards the village. This took about 20 minutes of the 3 hours we would have on Lundy before departure.

 

About ¾ way up we found a bench looking out to sea and ate our pie and pizza. We didn’t want to waste time eating at the island’s pub. Just before the village we took a path only lightly trodden with the Bristol Channel on our right. We only encountered 4 people this way and they were all staying on the island, obviously the thing to do if you really want to experience Lundy. Close to the sea the views were lovely. Gorse intermingled with heather- an unusual combination.

 

We came to a quarry and descended to a muddy stream which we crossed stepping on stones and a log. There are 50 million tons of granite on Lundy and at one time 200 men worked on quarries here, stonecutters from Scotland and labourers from Ireland. The path went up and then down again and I slipped on the loose gravel luckily falling landwards, though into a gorse bush! A sailing boat close by will have seen me trying to get up after several attempts, then picking the needles out of my hand and arm.

A bit up again and we came to a building I later discovered as the Timekeeper’s hut. Inside was a fireplace recently used, wooden benches and candles. Perhaps used by people who missed the boat it seemed very cosy as a bothy.

We walked on deciding that we needed to head back towards the village by 2.30. Heading up from the cliff side to the grass and bracken we saw some of the Lundy ponies- a stubby cross between New Forest ponies and horse introduced in the 1920s. The lady we sat next to on the boat passed us later and said she’d walked the opposite long side of Lundy and seen sika deer and soay sheep.

Walking towards the headland we saw what looked like a wartime pill box. I think it was Tibbets cottage one of the many places you can stay. Unfortunately we had to head back, down the middle straight path to the village, passing farm buildings open to view, so we couldn’t explore further. We smelt the newly cut wood, surely brought from the mainland, thin strips laid out in neat order ready for use. A tractor was busy somewhere close and chickens and ducks ran free. We could hear grunts and squeals of pigs behind stye walls and young Old Spots looked eagerly for scraps. Bacon and sausage are served in the pub!

 

We saw one of the 2 lighthouses on the other coast. It looked like people were on the top. You can stay in this and what a night view. I’m sure I could be tempted! Lundy has the highest lighthouse in Britain.

There is a well- stocked Post Office and shop. Lundy had its own stamps faced with a picture of Lundy’s owner and coinage of 1 or a half Puffin! Parked near the farm is a pristine looking red land-rover marked with Fire and Rescue.

 

Further down the village, past the campsite is the Marisco Tavern. William de Marisco used Lundy as a base for piracy and Henry 3rd who built the castle here had him executed for his misdeeds against the throne. The tavern is a fair size and there were 3 beers on tap very much to Bob’s taste but not mine. At the publican’s recommendation, I had a dark rum and ginger. It looked a lot of rum but I surprised myself by drinking it all and hopefully I would have a settled stomach on the boat. It is here that people check in for the island holiday houses. They do meals but we didn’t see goat on the menu as some people have suggested. We would have liked to linger looking at the books on the shelves and artefacts around the building like the life belts from sunken ships! There is a warning to be careful with precious water on the pub’s door. The toilets are for all to use and are clean.

The castle has a commanding site over the harbour. Also high up is the church, of some size for such a small island, enclosed in scaffolding- so not for visiting today. On our way back down to the harbour we passed by Millcombe House built by Heaven, Lundy’s first owner of note, in 1836. It is now a holiday let sleeping 12. Made of stone it has a central valley lead roof behind the parapet to collect rainwater.

No dogs can land on Lundy though I think there may be sheep dogs on the farm. We passed ordinary white sheep in a field. None of the paths we took were signposted and this is how they do it on Lundy to keep everything as natural as possible. We met people who had swum with seals and some who had done geocaching following clues at the little post boxes. It would have been 7 miles round the coast. There were caves, ruins and earthquake faults still to explore but the long path down to the quay was trickling with passengers for the boat- 4 for 4.30 and if you wanted a seat it was best to join the queue.

It had been warm on Lundy but as soon as we left the harbour and were on the sea the wind was at us again. Out came the blankets for those who hadn’t coats or were in shorts. We had a seat facing backwards in the shade and the view made me feel queasy. I decided to stand on the top deck in the sun behind the funnel which offered some wind protection. If I had stayed with Bob I would have seen the dolphin jump out of the water. I had a friendly chat with several people who helped the journey pass quicker. We were to be taken to Ilfracombe and taken by coach back to Bideford.

Arriving in Ilfracombe at 6.30, the huge Damien Hirst statue Verity of a pregnant lady with skin peeled back to reveal innards and bones was rather the stuff of nightmares. You couldn’t miss it as we were directly underneath. As we got off the boat we were told 5 coaches would be around the car park area to pick us up- over 260 people! There were none in sight. We were early this time and after a panicky 10 minutes they arrived but with parked cars to negotiate it was hard for them to manoeuvre to a suitable spot for people to get on. At last in convoy we were away.

An hour later we were hurrying to the Weatherspoon for some dinner which we enjoyed.

Our advice would be to see Lundy over several days rather than a day trip. You can go by helicopter in minutes. If the tides are right though there are more hours on the island. The boat goes 5 days a week.