Wandering in and Around Bideford, Devon (part 2)

Happy New Year 2018. I don't really make New year's resolutions any more, but let's just say I have an intention to blog more than I did in 2017.

Following on from my previous Bideford post which covered a cycle ride along the Tarka trail, the second part will cover a few other aspects of Bideford, mainly the area to the east of the River Torridge, called East-the-Water. Once the only way to cross the river, this magnificent bridge is still in use today but fortunately the majority of the traffic is now carried by the Torridge Bridge (the A39) further to the north.

Old Bideford Bridge, Bideford, Devon

Looking north from the Old Bideford Bridge, the Torridge Bridge can just about be seen in the distance.

Looking north from the Old Bideford Bridge, Bideford, Devon

As we crossed the bridge to East-the-Water and wandered along the road, one of the first sights that greeted me was the wonderful ghost sign.

BRUNSWICK WHARF.

I. BAKER & SON

GENERAL BUILDING MATERIAL

&COAL MERCHANTS.

I. Baker & Son ghost sign in Bideford, Devon

Just along from the Brunswick Wharf building was the site of another former wharf, Queen's Wharf. Ripe for redevelopment it still displays the Queen's Wharf name on the pillars either side of the gate.

Queen's Wharf, East-the-Water, Bideford, Devon

This next picture was taken from the Tarka Trail, looking down into East-the-Water, just to the south of the Old Bideford Bridge. Presumably these buildings were also parts of a former wharf, but now looking a bit worse for wear and adorned with street art.

Street art, East-the-Water, Bideford, Devon

Originally built as a Collar Factory, and later as a furniture store, the building still bears its name and purpose.

BLACKMORES DEPOSITRORY

Blackmore's Depository ghost sign, Bideford, Devon

After a very wet day, the skies cleared in the early evening as we made our way down into the town for dinner, treating us to some lovely cloud formations. This first picture is taken from the west side of the River Torridge.

Looking down towards the River Torridge from Bideford, Devon

Looking south from the Old Bideford Bridge, Bideford, Devon

Looking towards the River Torridge from East-the-Water, Bideford, Devon

Looking towards the River Torridge from East-the-Water, Bideford, Devon

Once again, not having kept a meticulous record of where I took my photos, and my memory failing me, I am really not sure where these next two pictures were taken. Given the date they were taken, I am very sure they are in and around Bideford, but exactly where I cannot tell. If I had to guess then I'd say they were taken from the Tarka Trail as we cycled along it north from Bideford to Barnstaple and Braunton.

Somewhere along the Tarka Trail, near Bideford, Devon

Somewhere along the Tarka Trail, near Bideford, Devon

Thanks for reading. This is the last of the two posts I'll be doing on Bideford. I still have some archive material from last summer to post, so that will probably feature next, but hopefully I'll get an opportunity to explore more this year and post accordingly.

A Weekend Break in Bideford, Devon (cycling the Tarka trail from Bideford to Meeth, and back)

As mentioned a few posts ago, I have a wealth of material from earlier in the year which I didn't have time (at the time) to process and post, but with a few days on my hands before going back to work, and still trying to fight off the man-flu, it's about time I put that right. The first of these retrospective posts will focus on a weekend break we had in Devon, Bideford to be precise, and the first of the Bideford posts will focus on a cycle ride we did along the magnificent Tarka Trail, a former railway now converted into a quite wonderful cycle path.

I must however first start with a small apology. We actually did two rides along the Tarka Trail from Bideford. The first was south from Bideford, which is covered by the majority of the photos, but we also cycled north which for some reason only seems to have a few photos where I'm sure I took more. The apology is that I fear I may have mixed some of these up and am not sure of the location of all of them - I think these are all from the ride between Bideford and Meeth. I'm very clear on the first one however, this is the old bridge carrying the former railway into Bideford station.

Former railway bridge, now home to the Tarka Trail cycle path, Bideford, Devon 

Tarka Trail cycle path, Bideford, Devon

Tarka Trail cycle path, Bideford, Devon

This next picture shows one of Bideford's two former railway stations. Although not very far from the main station, the Royal Hotel had its own station allowing guests easy access. Both platforms remain and are in reasonable condition, although the one opposite the hotel is a little overgrown.

The former Royal Hotel Station, Bideford, Devon 

The former Royal Hotel Station, Bideford, Devon

This is Bideford station proper, parts of which have now been restored (see pictures further down in this post).

The former railway station, Bideford, Devon

Where parts of the railway has been preserved, there is some wonderful railwayana (is that a word). This is a restored but disused signal just south of Bideford. You can also just see some re-laid tracks in the foreground, but these peter-out before long and I think are only there to allow the carriages which house the museum and tea rooms to have somewhere to sit.

Restored but disused signal, Bideford, Devon

This is where things begin to get a bit blurred. This is definitely on the route south from Bideford to Meeth, but not sure exactly where. Still, it's another fine example of a disused platform.

Disused railway platform, Tarka Trail, somewhere south of Bideford

Along the side of the former track bed there were some wonderful Gaudi-like sculptures, depicting animals from Tarka the Otter.

Sculpture along the Tarka Trail, somewhere south of Bideford

Sculpture along the Tarka Trail, somewhere south of Bideford

Cycling the Tarka Trail, somewhere south of Bideford

Disused railway platform, Tarka Trail, somewhere south of Bideford

I'm pretty sure this is just outside Meeth, which was as far as we cycled south along the Tarka Trail.

Cycling the Tarka Trail, former railway platform just outside Meeth, Devon

There's no mistaking this one though. This is the truly wonderful Puffing Billy café, situated at the former Great Torrington station. It was so good that we stopped for a bacon sandwich on the outward ride in the morning, and again for a cream tea on the return leg. Good for railwayana fans and cream tea connoisseurs alike.

Cycling the Tarka Trail, Puffing Billy Trading Station, Great Torrington, Devon

Of all the picture I took during our 40 mile round trip, this one is probably my favourite. Ok, so it's a bit staged with the milk churns there for historical purposes only, but I felt it captured the essence of a branch line railway quite well. Nice sky too.

Cycling the Tarka Trail, milk churns at the former Bideford station

I managed to take a picture of the restored signal box on the same evening.

Cycling the Tarka Trail, restored signal box, Bideford, Devon

I think these final two pictures must have been taken on a different day as the weather and light are both quite different. They both however show the restored railway carriages sitting on some re-laid track in the former Bideford station. Inside the carriages are a museum and tea-room.

Cycling the Tarka Trail, Bideford station, Devon

Cycling the Tarka Trail, Bideford station, Devon

 I do have some more pictures of Bideford off the Tarka Trail so to speak, so I may get around to sharing those in the next few days.,

Once again, thanks for taking the time to read my post, I hope you enjoyed it. As usual, comments are always welcome and appreciated.

An Urban Wander around Axminster, Devon

On the way back from a very brief weekend break on the Devon coast, we stopped off at Axminster. I'd never been there before so not quite sure what to expect. Obviously I was hoping for some interesting ghost signs but unfortunately I did not spot any, so had to settle for the next best thing, urban decay and abandonment.  I have to say this was not typical of the town, which had some more conventionally attractive architecture too, but of course that doesn't interest me anywhere near as much.

The first two pictures were taken just off the main high street and feature a former motor cycle and cycle specialist shop, which has sadly seen much better days.

Abandoned bike shop, Axminster, Devon

Derelict cycle shop, Axminster, Devon

No clues what the buildings in the next two pictures could have been. The first one could possibly have been a shop of some sort.

Abandoned building, Axminster, Devon

Abandoned building, Axminster, Devon

The final picture is a bit more obvious and is the former George Hotel. Various internet articles suggest it's undergoing a renovation but there was no sign of that when we walked past.

Abandoned hotel, Axminster, Devon

A wander around the narrow streets of Appledore, Devon

A change of scenery is in order for this blog post. You'll find no ghost signs, urban decay or disused railways today, but instead pictures from a recent week away in Devon, and in particular the narrow paths and roads of Appledore in Devon.

Little to say about the first few. I think the pictures speak for themselves, showing what a trult beautiful place it is.

Narrow streets, Appledore, Devon

Narrow streets, Appledore, Devon

Narrow streets, Appledore, Devon

Narrow streets, Appledore, Devon

Narrow streets, Appledore, Devon

A bit of variation now as we deviate fleetingly to look at some of the wonderful doors in Appledore (no pun intended).

Painted door, Appledore, Devon

Gate and door, Appledore, Devon

This next picture is probably my favourite of the lot, with the quirky display of brass instruments decorating the window ledge.

Brass instruments, Appledore, Devon

Narrow streets, Appledore, Devon

Okay, so I did start off my saying there would be no ghost signs, but this is a very different sort of ghost sign to those I normally post about. This is a mosaic in a doorway, presumably of an old shop. I did a quick search but could find nothing about what this used to be.

Doorway mosaic, Appledore, Devon

Narrow streets, Appledore, Devon

Narrow streets, Appledore, Devon

So once again, apologies for the lack of commentary in this post, but I really do think the pictures tell the story.

    

A Coastal Wander around Westward Ho!

Having recently returned from a glorious week away in Devon, I have plenty of photographs to share, in fact probably too many, so I've decided to share some now, and save others for later in the year should my real time wanders dry up and I need to resort to archive material. Don't worry though, you're unlikely to find me sharing pictures of the family on the beach, but more of my usual pictures of ghost signs, abandonment and decay found during various psychogeographical wanders.

I'm not completely sure whether this outdoor pool is still in use or not. The surrounds of the pool look fairly well kept and possibly even recently renovated. However, on a bright but fresh weekend in mid April it was certainly not being used.

Tidal, outdoor, seawater pool, Westward Ho!, Devon

 Tidal, outdoor, seawater pool, Westward Ho!, Devon

A bit further along the coast is this amazing house, Seafield House, which has seen better days and seems perilously close to falling off the cliff on to the rocky beach below. It would seem to still be inhabited, so these pictures are taken from outside the gates. It does seem to have gone through some attempt at restoration ... it even has its own web site and facebook page !!

Abandoned boat, Westward Ho!, Devon

Abandoned cars, Westward Ho!, Devon

Seafield House, Westward Ho!, Devon

Seafield House, Westward Ho!, Devon

Seafield House, Westward Ho!, Devon