Mortehoe - Lee Bay - Morte Point: Coast and Country

Our walk begins in the small village of Mortehoe with its varied selection of local craft shops. We follow a footpath parallel to the road out of the village, before joining the road further along for a short section of road-walk. Soon we turn off on a private road (public footpath) to pass through a caravan site before passing the ancient farm of Damage Barton on our way down to the coast.

Here a detour may be made to visit an ancient stone site of our ancestors, before continuing along fields and tracks to a minor road leading down to the small cove of Lee Bay. There is a hotel here that also has a snack-bar. (Alternatively, there is a large, grassy area on Damage Cliffs - where we rejoin the coast path - ideally suited to a picnic).

As we return up the quiet road from Lee to join the coast path, we pass an award-winning clifftop garden that you may like to visit. We now traverse several kilometres of coast path with many different vistas as we travel from bay to bay. Although steep in places, the well-trodden path takes us to Bull Point Lighthouse. Now joining a further section of this stunning clifftop coast path, we climb to the wild and open area of Morte Point with the breathtaking views alone making it worth a visit. Lundy Island can be seen a few miles offshore on clear days.

Our walk then continues along the rugged coast path again, around the point and crossing grassy fields overlooking Woolacombe Bay, before a short section of road returns us to our start point.

Damage Barton Farmhouse is dated 1656 but some of its structures could be earlier. There is evidence of a dwelling here in medieval times, when it was the home of the Lords of the Manor of Lincombe and Warcombe (ancient names for Lee). Damage Barton is built of local Morte slate and consists of a tall screen wall with a massive gate enclosing a cobbled courtyard.

This walk is about 10½ kilometres according to the map, but the feet say it is nearer 10½ miles! There are some very steep flights of steps on some of the coastal sections. If the coast path becomes too strenuous for any of the party, or if the weather turns very bad, there are several alternative paths leading inland to Mortehoe.

Note: there are many walks in this scenic area and several holiday camps are in easy reach of the walks we have done here. Check the newspapers around springtime and you will find many bargain breaks. We stayed at the Twitchen site over five days in 2007 for the grand sum of £58 (£10 per person, minimum four people, plus £18 services) courtesy of the Herald Express and Western Morning News. These are West Country papers, but some nationals also do bargain breaks.

England - South West England - Devon - Coast

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5/6/2019 - Roger Middleton

As an additional comment the carpark in Morte is £4.40 per day, and we took 3hrs 40mins with stops for photos etc. Lunch stop extra.

5/6/2019 - Roger Middleton

A spectacular circular coastal walk. A solid Strava trace gives 6.25 miles and 1,289 ft of climb and descent, and our legs confirm that. Excellent surface all the way round and some of the steeper climbs had steps which made for easier going under foot. None should be too challenging for regular walkers. A worthwhile variation at the start avoids the initial busy road section. Head across the road as you leave the car park towards North Morte. After about 400yds there is a junction of 3 footpaths. Take the middle one across the caravan park, through the farm and meet up with the main route at waypoint 4.

Walkingworld members near this walk

Walk id: 4510

Walk grade

Moderate Walk

Length

6.5 Miles

Height gain

450 Metres

Duration

3 Hours 23 Mins

Average rating

Rated by 2 members

Dog rated by 0 members