Synopsis: Dismantled railway lines and river banks provide the majority of the walking on this trek by the River Plym. The bare winter trees lining the hills provided dramatic backdrop to the day’s walking.
This walk is derived from walk 18 in the book Adventurous Pub Walks in Devon by Michael Bennie. This book, which I borrowed from the library, has about 20 walks described in it. This is the first of my walks from this book that I have attempted. I completed most of this walk, although unfortunately I didn’t quite reach the destination village of Shaugh Prior, where the pub of the book title is to be found, as I needed to trim some time from the walk to stand a chance of catching my bus back to Exeter (which, as it happens, I failed to do anyway – see below). This walk today was marvellous and stands as high recommendation for the book. To see other walks from this book that I have completed, use the link under Tags to the right.
I failed to get going early enough this morning which resulted in my having to catch a bus from Exeter (the 10:45) later than that which would have been ideal. Still, the sun was shining, and despite a strong chill wind, I was keen to give this walk a go. I was walking in Plymouth by 12:10 which was reasonable.
Weighbridge Cottage
My walk today required a 1.9 mile (40 minute) extension to reach the guide book start at Plym Bridge, since I was travelling by bus and needed to get from Marsh Mills roundabout to the start point. This was easy, level and mostly pleasant, once away from Marsh Mills roundabout, following the railway route not far from the River Plym. On the way I passed Weighbridge Cottage, rather Tyrolean looking by the river.
I’ve since read ‘Historic journey marks Plymouth rail line's reopening’ which tells of the reopening of this line from Marsh Mills to Plym Bridge. There has been talk of a ‘Bid to reopen old train line’ all the way to Tavistock; could that possibly happen?
Plym Bridge - car park
There were very few cars in the National Trust managed car park at Plym Bridge, but I believe this car park can get quite busy, particularly at weekends. Plym Bridge is a popular parking place for cyclists about to make use of the Plym Valley Cycle Path.
Plym Bridge - Plym Bridge Woods - detail from information board
I was amused by a story told on the Plym Bridge Woods information board. Apparently the car park was once Plym Bridge Halt, used by Victorian visitors who would alight from trains out of Plymouth to stroll in the woodland and beside the river. Families used a service known as the Woolworths Special, so called because it cost sixpence to use the train, the same price as the highest cost item from the store in those days. Walk guide: Historic Walking Trail through Plymbridge Woods (National Trust).
River Plym
The railway track ends at Plym Bridge, and from there the walk route follows the banks of the River Plym. It was refreshing how unspoilt the countryside was such a short distance from the busy traffic of Marsh Mills roundabout. I immediately felt as if I’d left the modern world far behind as I walked by the glinting waters of the River Plym.
River Plym - weir
I soon came upon a delightful spot near the Weir that’s in the shadow of Cann Viaduct. In fact this spot was so delightful, and my tummy so empty, I chose to stop here to eat my picnic lunch. I sat just across the water, on the west bank, from where I approached it on the east bank. How to get there? Well, that requires a little manoeuvring which I’ll explain: from the east bank of weir return from weir to viaduct and as you approach divert left to climb steeply to viaduct; cross viaduct and then immediately divert left, and then left again, descending to the west bank of River Plym and then follow the course of the river once again.
River Plym
After lunch I continued on my walk north following the west bank of the River Plym. This is very easy walking being mostly level. I’ve always loved walking by water so this was proving a real treat. I slightly overshot the exit path from the river which is to be found just as a lane is approached south-east of Bickleigh.
Start of what once was a 'permissive way'
A little complication was encountered at the point where a permissive path was, according to the guide book, supposed to start. The path sign had obviously had a saw taken to it as its ‘fingers’ were missing. Evidence that the path is still walked seemed clear so I decided to give it a go but a little way in I was met by a chiselled sign saying ‘Private – path closed’. I decided to retrace my steps back to the road and pick up the public right of way a little way further north along the lane. This took me back onto my original course. Whether you take my route or the not so ‘permissive’ path is a matter for your discretion. I suggest there’s little reason not to walk the quiet lane.
My walk took me briefly through a woods and then along a lane that skirted the contours with good views across the valley. At this point I decided to check my GPS ETA for my bus stop and realised that I was a little over time for the bus I wished to catch. Regrettably I decided I needed to shave a little off my walk so took the decision not to walk into Shaugh Prior itself even though I was very close and could see it from across the shallow valley. My photo below isn’t brilliant so I’ve inculded to the right this rather splendid photo of Shaugh Prior from the Francis Frith collection taken c.1965.
Shaugh Prior on the opposite hillside
From the point of this brief view of Shaugh Prior I followed the lane descending steeply to Shaugh Bridge which crosses the River Plym at it’s confluence with the River Meavy. This has obviously been a favourite recreation spot for some time, as evidenced by this painting.
Confluence of River Meavy and River Plym
I stopped briefly at Shaugh Bridge to grab a few photos which show a considerably more wintry scene than that depicted in the painting above.
Plym Valley Cycle Trail - Shaugh Halt
The lane then rose gradually to eventually join the dismantled railway of the Plym Valley Cycle Path at a point where there was a small station platform that ran under a road bridge. I assume this was once the train stop that served Shaugh Prior (since checked out, and yes, this was known as Shaugh Halt).
Plym Valley Cycle Trail - view from the trail
To complete my walk all I now needed to do was follow the route of the Plym Valley Cycle Path all the way back to Marsh Mills roundabout. It was interesting to discover how varied this stretch of the walk was from the stretch along the banks of the River Plym, despite the fact that they’re so very close to each other. From here on the trail the path was higher which afforded me sweeping views across the Devon hills draped in silvery bare winter trees.
I had a bit of a calamity with my intended bus out of Plymouth in that it sailed on by as I stood at my bus stop (Crabtree Military Road NE). Two buses came down the road, one overtaking another, and the bus I wanted, obscured by the bus travelling in the inner lane, was, so I belatedly discovered, the bus I wanted. How infuriating! Luckily there was another bus in an hour, last of the day, so yet more waiting in freezing temperatures. An example of the occasional downside to using public transport.
Despite being a little grumpy at having missed my bus, it had been a superb day’s walking, and I was feeling good, if a little cold and hungry.
Note: a number of walks described by Michael Bennie are available as downloads from: Walking Downloads: Pocket Pub Walks Devon from the Countryside Books web site. These downloadable walks appear to have been extracted from the book Pocket Pub Walks Devon published by Countryside Books, not the book I used for this walk. I have not tried any of these downloadable walk guides but include mention here as they may be worth investigating further.
Walk Statistics:
Total Distance: 14.7 miles
Moving Time: 4hrs 40min
Stopped Time: 57min
Total Ascent: 639 metres
Maximum Elevation: 139 metres
Buses: X38
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