Springtime walk from Lynton around The Valley of the Rocks (12 Km)

It was a beautiful sunny Spring day with light winds. We set off from Lynton and took the road by the church heading towards the coast. The church grounds have a wonderful view of Lynmouth so we paused here for a photo. Passing the footpath for Lynmouth we continued along the road with houses and cottages along the way. The road led to a footpath following the coastal path away from Lynton. Note, the path has steep edges in places for those who are nervous of drops. We kept Leo on a short lead and managed it fine. The views back over towards Lynmouth were absolutely stunning. The footpath opened out onto the Valley of the Rocks and we continued along the path into the valley passing Castle Rock on the right and to Lee Abbey, a beautiful building in a wonderful setting which is now a Christian retreat.  We followed the toll road (with a honesty box) down the hill and into Lee Bay. Here are toilets and a cafe (not open when we were there unfortunately). After a brief stop at the beach, from the toilets we took a path into a wooded valley - Six Acre Wood. As we had walked a fair way down, we now had the walk back up! However, it was lovely walk along the river. We stopped at the top and sat on a log for a refreshment with spectacular views down the valley towards the sea. The path became a bridle way and we followed this path until it eventually opened out overlooking Lee Abbey and Valley of the Rocks on the other side of the valley we had walked earlier. We could see a cricket game taking place at the bottom of the valley. It was a steep climb up and over the hill with stunning views. Once we reached the crest and turned direction we caught sight of Lynton. Once in Lynton, we stop at the Lyn Candles and spent some time making purchases. We had already decided to have Sunday roast at the pub in Lynmouth so we headed back to the church and followed the path down to Lynmouth.

After a lovely meal, we took a very steep path on the other side River Lyn, through Bonnicott Woods which zig zagged for some time, meeting wild deer along the way, until we reached the top over looking Lynton. We headed towards the sound of the river Lyn through Lyn Woods and followed the river until we met a bridge and the end of our challenging walk.