| Great Escapes - N Devon 7 |
North Devon is rich in history and each of its towns and villages boasts a unique set of traditions. Learn about the area's seafaring past, view colourful minerals and rocks and more in museums which recount local life from its early beginnings. Follow our route below and take a fascinating journey back in time.
1. Ilfracombe Museum
The start/finish for our driving route is Ilfracombe Museum. Take the A361 from Barnstaple for 12.5 miles. At the traffic lights entering Ilfracombe, turn left onto Wilder Road. Follow the road to the right and the museum is in 0.5 miles on the left, next to the Landmark Theatre.
From the east, on the A399, enter Ilfracombe and drive along the High Street. Turn right at the traffic lights next to the Queens Hotel, then right at the next set of lights onto Wilder Road, bringing you to the museum.
Ilfracombe Museum is crammed with a fascinating and diverse collection of, among other things, natural history objects and items of maritime tradition. Opened in 1932, it displays stories and memorabilia of the local area, and an archive of newspapers and photographs dating back to the mid-19th century. Fascinating relics of the Victorian era's taste for world travel and collecting include butterflies, moths, the second biggest collection of pickled bats in the country, a pickled two-headed kitten and a four-legged chicken skeleton, work tools, kitchenware and lots more.
2. Combe Martin Museum
Zero your car's trip meter, then turn right onto Wilder Road. Turn left at the first set of traffic lights, then left at the lights opposite the Queen's Hotel and follow the signs for Combe Martin. Take the right fork in the road at 0.5 miles. Follow this road along the scenic coastline. At 5.2 miles, turn left into Combe Martin's Parade Car Park and walk down the steps to the museum, which overlooks Newberry Beach.
Combe Martin Museum houses a delightful collection of artefacts, photographs, maps and pictures of the old village's industrial legacy. It was formerly a centre of silver mining and lime burning and you can still go on a tour of the key industrial sites. Ask at the museum for details.
3. Lyn & Exmoor Museum
Continue on the A399 and turn left at 11.6 miles onto the A39 towards Lynton. At 18.5 miles, turn left. Follow the road until you come to the large car park on the left next to the school at 19.6 miles. Park here and you'll find the Lyn & Exmoor Museum on the other side of the school, housed in the whitewashed cottage.
This museum is a superb example of an 18th-century cottage. Inside, the collection tells the story of the life and work of the population. There are early photographs of Lynton, a scale model of the Lynton to Barnstaple railway, a section devoted to Lynmouth's flood disaster of 1952, and a recreated Victorian Exmoor kitchen. There's more, too, so do see it for yourself.
4. Mortehoe Heritage Centre
Return to the A39 and head back toward Blackmoor gate. Turn right onto the A399 for Ilfracombe at 27.6 miles, then turn left onto the A3123 at 30.6miles. Go straight on at the Mullacott Cross roundabout at 32.5 miles. At 34.3m, bear right onto the B3343 and follow this road to arrive at the Mortehoe Heritage centre at 36.3miles.
The Heritage Centre is a treasure trove of local history housed in a delightful Grade II listed National Trust barn and is part of a stunning cliff-top village. There's a great presentation of local shipwrecks and children can play the centre's interactive games and puzzles.
5. The Braunton Museum
Turn right out of the car park and follow the road as it loops round to rejoin the B3343. Head back to the Mullacott Cross roundabout (40 miles). Turn right onto the A361, then right at the traffic lights in Braunton at 45.5 miles. An immediate left brings you to the Braunton and District Museum.
Braunton Museum tells the story of the beginning of the town, from the arrival of St Brannock from South Wales in the 6th century, through to its agricultural and maritime heritage.
6. Gem, Rock & Shell Museum
Turn left out of the car park and follow the road into Croyde. The Gem Rock and Shell Museum is at 53miles, next to Billy Budd's pub.
The Croyde Gem Rock and Shell Museum boasts a variety of dazzling minerals, rocks and shells from around the world. The rocks are in their natural, unpolished state but if you want, you can have stones polished or carved here, ready to be used for jewellery.
7. Dartington Crystal
Return to Braunton and turn right for Barnstaple on the A361 at 60.5 miles. Turn left at the first traffic island in Barnstaple, at 65.5 miles, and skirt the town centre. Take the third exit here, at the lights, which takes you over a bridge over the River Taw. Continue straight through the next traffic island, on the B3233, then turn left at the following island, and then right onto the A39. At 69 miles, rejoin the B3233 southbound for Great Torrington. Turn right at 69.9 miles for Torrington and Okehampton, crossing the river, then left onto the A386 south for Torrington. Follow the route through Great Torrington and turn left into School Lane. Follow the signs for Dartington Crystal (77.4 miles).
Dartington Crystal is not a traditional museum but it is a great showcase for the age-old skill of glass blowing. A team of glass blowers can be seen gathering molten glass from a furnace then shaping it into the most delicate forms. The visitor centre has an exhibition of the fascinating story of glass making through the ages, and there's a chance to take a tour of the factory.
8. North Devon Maritime Museum
Return to the A386 and head north through Bideford. Cross the A39 and bear right at 86.5 miles as the road forks right. Turn left into Odun Rd at 87 miles and park in the car park here.
The North Devon Maritime Museum is set in a superb Georgian-listed building that overlooks the ship-building village of Appledore. Each room features a different aspect of the maritime activities of the area. There are
displays about smuggling in addition to the assembled tools of shipbuilding. A reconstruction of an Appledore kitchen from the turn of the century gives a fascinating insight into the period, as do the models and photographs of sail and steam vessels, wrecks and rescues. There's even a Victorian School where lessons are given to visiting school parties – under the 'threat' of the cane!
9. Shipwreck Museum
Return to the A39 and turn right towards Bude at 88.5 miles. At 99.8 miles turn right onto the B3248. At 104.4 miles continue through Hartland and join West Street. Follow the signs for Hartland Quay (106 miles).
Hartland Quay is as dramatic as coastal scenery gets and the Shipwreck Museum here has displays of local shipwrecks and the lifeboat service rescues.
• Return to the A39 heading back to Barnstaple. Turn onto the B3233 and cross the river Taw. Skirt the town and rejoin the A361 northbound for Ilfracombe (i.e. retrace that section of the route taken between the Croyde Museum and Dartington Crystal). Return to Ilfracombe at 143 miles. |
|
|
Distance 143 miles.
Time 10 hours.
Start/finish Ilfracombe Museum, Ilfracombe.
Suitable for Adults (not all museums have interactive areas for the children)
REFRESHMENTS
Rock Inn, Rock Hill, Georgeham. Tel 01271 890322
Old Union Inn, Stibbs Cross.
Tel 01805 601253.
Chichester Arms, Mortehoe.
Tel 01271 870411.
ATTRACTIONS
Croyde Gem, Rock and Shell Museum Tel 01271 890407
Mortehoe Heritage Centre
Tel 01271 870028
Dartington Crystal
Tel 01805 626262
Ilfracombe Museum
Tel 01271 863541
Braunton Museum
Tel 01271 816688
Combe Martin Museum
Tel 01271 882636
Lyn & Exmoor museum
Tel 01598 752225
Hartland Quay Shipwrecks Museum Tel 01288 331353
Appledore Maritime Museum
Tel 01237 422064
TIP
For more on museums in the North Devon area, visit the dedicated website at Devon Museums website. The site displays museums on a 'clickable' map. The collections are listed by theme along with the latest news and events.
|
|
