Our weekend in Westward Ho! - Devon

Molly Davies
Oct 24, 2017
3 min read

We visited Westward Ho! in Devon at the end of September. Weather wasn’t on our side for the first few hours of our short break, but it didn’t stop us from getting out and enjoying our weekend away. We arrived at Westward Living at around 7 P.M on the Friday evening. Our home for the weekend, “Star Cottage”, was better than we’d first expected. A jacuzzi in the front garden (hidden from neighbours), a kitchen & living area attached with two bedrooms to the side, both with en-suite bathrooms. What more could you ask for a weekend away down to the coast! Also we were provided with a very British plate of scones, clotted cream & raspberry jam! The Friday evening we got there, how could we not take a dip in the jacuzzi? Also, while rummaging through cupboards, we came across a twister box, another thing we felt inspired to have a go at. All-in-all our trip so far was turning out to be rather amusing. Saturday — The next morning the weather was pretty bleak, not the most ideal weather to have whilst being near the coast. We decided to face the weather head on and visit a small village called Clovelly. The village is tiny, and located right on the Devon coast, with only a small cobbled path leading down through the old coastal cottages to the sea. The locals use sleighs to carry their groceries up & down the cobbled paths, along with the local donkeys that help. We didn’t see many people while we were visiting, even though it was a Saturday, things were closed and everyone was hidden away — Understandable as the weather was misty & windy. We finally got down to the Clovelly harbour, the tide was out and the boats were keeled over on the pebbled beach. Besides the weather being very “British”, it didn’t stop us all from having an ice-cream at the end of it. We decided that to ascend back up the Clovelly cobbled path back to the car, we would take a range-rover to the top. After a treacherous climb to the top of Clovelly, of-course, we decided it was time for a bit of pub grub. We stopped of at a small restaurant 10 mins walk away from Westward Living “The Pig On The Hill”. Although the outside is deceiving, the inside is very snazzy and the food is even more delicious! Heavily recommend, if staying down in Westward Living, or even if you’re just down in the area. After we’d let our stomachs settle, we were ready to head back out into the cold. We headed down to Westward Ho! Beach, just a short drive from our place. I took with me my body board and even though the weather was not ideal, I was in the sea without a wetsuit along with all the surfers & wind surfers. I had so many people stopping and nodding their heads at me as if to say how crazy I was, I even managed to stop a wind surfer in the sea that was impressed I was in with no wetsuit. The waves weren’t up to my usual standard and I only managed to ride a couple, so by then I think it was time to head in. We took a bimble along the beach with the dogs, watching the wind surfers surf & the dogs play in the sand. After a long day in the ocean air, we were ready to relax and head back to Westward Living. Bubbly open, and into the jacuzzi we went. Sunday — Early start, ready to head home! The truck was packed before 10 A.M. and it was time for us to leave Star Cottage. Luckily I was up early enough to get in a quick jacuzzi dip before we left. On our drive back home we stopped on the way to a long beach called “Saunton Sands” (Just along from Woolacombe). Saunton Sands was a super long beach, the waves were much larger than Westward Ho! and the reflections of the sand were absolutely gorgeous! We let Katie, our 14 yr old West Highland terrier, run free off the lead and she was belting it down the beach.We haven’t seen her that chirpy in years! Before long we were back in the truck, on the way home! All-in-all we had a fantastic time in Westward Ho! & Clovelly, I would be back there in a heartbeat!