Sunshine, scenery & Napoleonic flags

It's been a fabulous week - and I'm not just talking about the beautiful sunny weather. For me the start of the week involved finally continuing the adventure of walking all 630 miles of the South West Coast Path for the second time, after a year off writing my book about the South Devon Coast. My journey started in Penzance, and over 3 days I rounded Lands End, passed Cape Cornwall, before finishing at a busy St Ives in the spring sunshine. 

It was three fantastic days - a perfect temperature for walking and the fantastic blue skies and sunshine made the beautiful Cornish scenery sparkle in the spring sunshine. The views on this amazing stretch of the South West Coast Path did come at a cost however, with 23 hours of often hard walking over 3 days, covering 41 miles (over 13 miles a day) and more than 2,600 metres of climb, the equivalent of climbing Ben Nevis twice! I finished the fantastic if short walking holiday with aching feet and legs, but also a wonderful feeling of well being that comes from exercise in the outdoors on some of the most spectacular coastal scenery in Britain.

Azure seas and fantastic scenery near Zennor, Cornwall

An already fabulous week was topped off by arriving home to find boxes and boxes of my books (Britain's Heritage Coast, Exmouth to Plymouth) had finally arrived from the publisher! As my house is now full of boxes full of books, it would be great if you would visit www.garyholpin.co.uk and buy one so I can have my spare bedroom back! ;-)

A celebration of the history & natural beauty of the South Devon coast - out now!

In the 630 miles of the South West Coast Path there are countless fantastic views, but there are some that I love so much that I find myself going back to them again and again. One of my favourite short walks involves starting in the scenic town of Salcombe, rounding Bolt Head to emerge at the beautiful Starehole Bay. A little further on, a short way inland from majestic cliffs is the Admiralty signal station at West Soar. When I first saw this strange building, stranded in the middle of a field, I had no idea what it was but it immediately became a favourite spot for it's photographic potential (as hopefully demonstrated in the photo below!).

Admiralty signal station at West Soar, between Bolt Head & Bolt Tail

It was only later, during research for my book that I discovered the amazing history of this strange little building.  Around 300 years old, the building is a rare survivor from the Napoleonic wars with France and was originally built as one of a chain of lookouts whose purpose was to spot any potential invasion fleet and alert nearby naval bases. 

The coastline of the South West has a long history of helping in the defence of the nation, with one of the most well known being the use of fire beacons to warn of the approach of the vast Spanish Armada invasion fleet in 1588, which was ultimately defeated by Sir Francis Drake, after he had famously finished his game of bowls on Plymouth Hoe.

By the 18th century, a number of the prominent headlands of the South West coast were to play a new role in defending the nation during the wars with Napoleon's France. The Navy's traditional method of communication up to the 18th century was by messengers on horseback, but this was painfully slow, and a better solution was considered essential to ensure that the Admiralty could react quickly to any potential invasion.  

Around 1795 a new Admiralty communication network was established with the building of a series of Admiralty signal stations on prominent hills and headlands all along the English Channel coast. The stations were built close enough together to be seen by adjacent stations and were manned by a Navy Lieutenant and staff who kept watch 24 hours a day. Signalling was done by displaying various flags and balls on masts above the buildings and this visual message was passed from one station to the next, until it finally reached the main Admiralty fleet ports (of which nearby Plymouth was one). At night fires and lights were used to communicate the message.

As well as warning of enemy activities, the signal stations were also used to warn of possible smuggling activities nearby, and the station staff were incentivised to help local coast guards in the battle with the smugglers by receiving a reward for any smugglers captured as a result of their tip offs. 

The long and colourful history of this strange little building which now sits in the middle of a field on a remote headland near Salcombe only adds to the scenic beauty of this fantastic stretch of the South Devon coast. If you'd like to find out more about the history of this beautiful part of the South West, then why not consider buying a copy of my book at www.garyholpin.co.uk. A share of the proceeds goes to help support the South West Coast Path Association, a charity which helps to maintain & improve the South West Coast Path for the benefit of the millions who use it every year, and the many local businesses that benefit from visitors to the Path.    

Coast gaurds & postmen

So, the bad news is that the postman still hasn't arrived with the first copies of my book 'Britain's Heritage Coast, Exmouth to Plymouth'. The good news is that means I have time to share a little more of South Devon's history!

One of the most evocative aspects of South Devon's long and eventful history is the story of its central role in the boom in smuggling in the 18th and 19th centuries, as described in my book, an excerpt of which is shared below, long with a picture of the atmospheric smugglers tunnel in Shaldon.

Smugglers tunnel, Shaldon

A life of smuggling

As long as there have been taxes on goods, there have been smugglers trying to avoid them, and the story of smuggling stretches a long way back into history. However, by the late 18^th and early 19^th century, what had traditionally been a small-scale local trade had exploded into a major industry and huge quantities of contraband was flooding into Britain. Devon's ports were at the centre of this industry, and the livelihood of many Devon residents became intimately linked to smuggling.

The boom in smuggling was the inevitable result of huge increases in customs and excise duties, which were applied to imported goods by successive governments struggling to pay for the endless wars with France. Duties increased steadily during the early 18^th century, and were applied to more and more imported goods, putting an increasing number of everyday items outside the meagre means of ordinary people. Historically, import duties had been collected by customs men based at Britain's major ports, and although this system worked well for centuries, it was ill-prepared for the explosion in smuggling that was to come. Some estimates suggest that at its peak in the late 18^th century, as much as a quarter of all the goods imported into Britain were illegal, and for some items such as tea, the figure was nearly two thirds. The coast of South Devon was perfect for smugglers, with its proximity to the main sources of contraband in the Channel Islands and France, its secluded beaches and coves, and the logistical problems of policing such a remote coastline.

With smuggling more profitable than fishing, and despite the risk of death by hanging if caught, many skilled sailors turned to smuggling as a way of making a good living. They crammed their ships with smuggled goods, and used their sea-faring skills to spirit them secretly across the English Channel, often in bad weather and at night to increase the chances of evading the Excise Men. Landing in secluded bays, they would be met by land-based smugglers, who would unload the boats and haul the goods up cliffs and through smugglers tunnels to secret hiding places ready for distribution. Even the gentry of society, including MPs, Magistrates and Clergymen were known to have been involved as customers of smuggled goods, and sometimes even as the coordinators and funders of major smuggling operations.

Now that the horrendous grey skies and endless rain are finally behind us, and spring has finally arrived I'm finally hoping to get out on the South Devon coast soon, taking in the sea air and take some more photos of the stunning coastline to share soon. In the mean time, if you've enjoyed this and want to read more, then my book is available for sale now at www.garyholpin.co.uk