The original plan was to go shopping in Exeter and have Wagamama’s for dinner. But with Exeter over an hours drive, and both of us not feeling too great, we opted for a walk instead. The day was bright and clear, but bloody freezing. Oh man, was it cold.
Last summer we purchased National Trust memberships, but as life got in the way, there was always something to stop us from using them. Which is silly really, as living in Devon means we have an abundance of places to explore. Watersmeet was a place I’d visited a couple of summers ago with a friend, so I thought I’d show David as I knew he’d love it.
Hidden away, past Lynmouth, Watersmeet is a spectacular river gorge, surrounded by woodlands. There’s a tea-room nestled in right next to the river, but with it being the beginning of January they had closed for the winter. And they had the right idea as it really was bloody cold.
Arriving in mid-afternoon, we wandered around with only a family of dog walkers for company. The fading afternoon light made the trees golden and the river glisten. But there is only so much natural beauty you can appreciate before frostbite kicks in and you desperately need something to warm you up.
So we took the short drive down to Lynmouth, a harbour village, on the hunt for a hot drink. The village was deserted, so it was like we had the entire place to ourselves. I discovered an old-fashioned sweet shop, the kind that has jars of sweets in the window, and I bought some lemon-meriunge flavoured fudge. My favourite.
We managed to find one cafe that was open for another hour, The Pavillion, which overlooked the sea. I had my first Chai Latte (oh wow they are crazy good), whilst David warmed himself up over a frothy coffee. A latte or cappuccino perhaps.
The sun was just about setting over the horizon, leaving a pinky-orangy hue in the sky. With that, the street lamps started to come on, lighting the village and making it look even more charming. After a final walk along the seafront, we made our way home, climbing into our pyjamas as soon as we got through the front door, with extra fluffy socks on, to warm our freezing toes.
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