Discovering Dartmouth

Arriving in Dartmouth, the weather was forecast to be very windy, far too windy for us to want to be out on the sea. So, we decided to sit out the stormy weather at Dart Marina Yacht Harbour. The marina is upriver from Dartmouth itself, above the upper ferry. It was peaceful there and a pleasant walk from town.

Sheltering on the River Dart

Upper ferry

As the weather was wet and windy, we busied ourselves with onboard boat jobs, including several loads of washing (luckily the Marina had a great laundry room).

We timed our visits to town between the showers and wrapped up appropriately.

Not always sunny

The Butterwalk

Dartmouth is a very popular tourist destination on the western bank of the River Dart with a significant number of listed buildings.

One of the most striking is The Butterwalk. This was built between 1635 to 1640 and is an outstanding example of a Tudor building. Its intricately carved wooden fascia is supported on granite columns and, originally, it was a row of merchants’ houses. Its most famous visitor was Charles II who held court here whilst sheltering from the storms in 1671.

Another building in the Tudor style is the Bayards Cove Inn. The black and white front hides a building which actually dates back to 1380. It is the second oldest building in Dartmouth and was originally a homestead with a wide courtyard known as Agincourt House. It is now a popular inn, welcoming guests from far and wide.

Bayards Cove Inn

Inner harbour

We took advantage of the one sunny day and walked through the town, along the coast and up to the headland.

Along the way, we spotted many of the original fortifications designed to protect the harbour from enemies.

At the mouth of the river is Dartmouth Castle, an artillery fort which formed part of the defence plan. The earliest parts of the castle date from 1380s.

Across the river is Kingswear Castle, another fort. In the past, there were huge chains stretched between them to stop invaders from entering the River Dart.

Today, Dartmouth Castle is owned by English Heritage and Kingswear is actually a holiday let (check out Landmark Trust).

Enter who dares

Protecting the entrance

After a long walk, we felt we deserved a treat and no trip to Devon would be complete without a cream tea. This shop supplied it in a bag…ideal to take back to the boat and enjoy in the warm.

Hard to resist

Yum

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