Day 105: English Coastal Path

D105: EXMOUTH to DAWLISH

Thursday 21st September 2023

Today miles: 17.9 Total miles: 1771.8

I’m so pleased to be back walking along the King Charles III English Coastal Path and I’m hoping to achieve 170 miles over the next ten days. Up until recently the weather in September has been unseasonably warm but it’s expected to be a little bit cooler and a little bit wetter over the next two weeks.
I decided to drive down to Exmouth overnight and managed to avoid the frustration of any heavy traffic, arriving in Exmouth around 7am. I paid £8 for 24 hour parking in Exmouth and soon after I was back on the ECP, exactly where I had left it two months ago.

The first section of the ECP runs alongside the East Devon Way, which also happens to run adjacent to the railway tracks. I crossed the train track several times during this first two miles to Lympstone. The path is a mix between wet dirt track and several lengths of wooden boardwalk covering the wettest sections. I arrived at the edge of Lymestone Royal Marine Commando training base, initially thinking it was a prison, cos of all the barbed wire. Not too far away there’s a large group of young recruits standing in their full jungle camo gear getting loud instructions from their drill sergeant.
The wide path was very popular with cyclists and dog walkers but these began to dwindle significantly after I left Exton.

I don’t know exactly where this happened but at some point I went from walking along the East Devon Way and transferred onto the Orange Way. After a quick refreshment break I turned onto a quiet county lane and almost walked into a huge spider web hanging across the entire path, complete with a huge spider in the centre. Thankfully I managed to see the web in time and I avoided becoming trapped like a giant fly. I managed to crawl on all fours under the sticky trap.
At Topsham the footpath which runs through the Exe Reedbeds Nature Reserve resembles a stream and despite my best efforts I can’t avoid wet walking shoes. The first foot bridge crossing the River Exe is The Countess Wear Bridge and I’m quickly across without any difficulties. Soon after crossing the bridge it began to drizzle but this then turned into proper rain a few minutes later. I had something to eat quickly whilst sat under the M5 bridge, which was the only dry ground, before moving on in my full waterproof gear. It was getting a little confusing, cos I’ve now moved onto the Exe Valley Way/Two Counties Way which runs alongside the Exeter Canal. The path was reasonably firm but the heavy rain was wearing down my mood and my feet were now proper soaked. At Powderham Castle Estate I spotted dozens of deer grazing in the fields, clearly used to people and not fazed at all by my presence.

At Starcross I spotted an empty bus shelter and decided to have a longer break and try to wring out my saturated socks. I was joined a few minutes later by a couple who were on a short cycling holiday. I’ve got extra socks in my pack but I’m not willing to sacrifice these so early on this trip.
Dawlish Warren is just another small nature reserve located on the Western side (mouth) of the River Ex. There’s some nice deep red rock formations at Warren Dawlish and the sun had finally decided to make an appearance. The train station at Dawlish was less than a mile away and it’s situated right on the coast. I had decided against wild camping tonight and instead I caught the train back to Exmouth and slept in my car. It’s not a particularly enjoyable or comfortable experience, trying to sleep in a Toyota Aygo.