A walk from Dawlish Warren to Dawlish

Here's a song to listen to while you read. We believe it compliments the blog perfectly. The gentle, sultry vocals as well as the ebbing rhythm capture the sleepy quintessentially English Dawlish vibe. - "The Sea" by Morcheeba.

Hello! Welcome to our first ever blog! This is just a kind of test blog entry while we’re still in England planning our travels. Hopefully more exciting adventures are to come.

Approaching the end of our three years living in Exeter, Ed and I wanted to explore the beauty of Devon while we still had the chance. We decided to explore the beautiful town and beach of Dawlish. We planned to walk from Dawlish Warren to Dawlish as soon as the weather cleared up…

We waited patiently and decided on Monday 12th.

We climbed aboard a train at St James’s Park station in Exeter. The journey included thirty-two minutes of beautiful seaside scenery for the small price of £4.30. Upon alighting at Dawlish Warren we were greeted with a slightly gloomy sky, a closed off beach and a run-down abandoned café. We were somewhat disappointed.

We walked past the café with a hint of pessimism in our step and found the beach walk that would lead to the town of Dawlish. The beach stretched in front of us: quiet but beautiful.

After walking half the way to Dawlish, we stopped for a beautiful picnic lunch.

Some time passed and we reached Dawlish: a quaint and inherently Devonshire town with a population of 11,312. The town is full of tea shops, cafes and ice cream parlours and is dotted with gently strolling couples and families. The place is peaceful and secluded and feels like a small English haven, with a gentle river (home to majestic black swans) running all the way through the town.

After walking along the river and past the weirs and birdlife, we walked away from Dawlish, along the beautiful coastal rail line where we stumbled upon a more secluded beach at the edge of the town. The place felt as though it had been entirely untouched for centuries. Shortly after discovering the small beach we returned home: beach-swept and happy.