UK 2020 Covid Tour - day 26

It’s unheard of for us to do our “induction walk” on the last day, but astonishing as it might sound, Boris didn’t consult our diary before his latest lockdown idea. So we decide to get our proper walking done on the full days and leave the Torquay tour until the last day, which we have to cut short in order to get home. 

It’s the best weather day but probably the coldest, so we keep our jeans on after breakfast instead of changing to shorts. Heading out of town we’re delighted to find a small theatre in a repurposed church nearby, before dropping down to Meadfoot beach and starting our coastal walk to the north. A stunning looking hotel, the Osbourne, sits commanding over this area, looking glorious in the blazing sunshine. 

Walking on we pass the natural divide between the two headlands and walk up Thatcher Drive ogling the multi-million pound houses that overlook Thatcher Rock. This takes us north towards Boscombe and more stunning scenery with the added bonus of new bay, new ships, this time two P&O and Cunard’s QM2. We pop down to Anstey’s Cove because we can before continuing our walk. 

From Anstey’s Cove we can see more ships, this time two from P&O and Cunard’s subliminal QM2.

An old school friend, well actually she’s no older than me, asked for information on an old family haunt so as our walk was passing we stopped for a few photos of this half demolished hotel. A lovely builder chap gave us all the details for the planned replacement. 

Out intended stop is Kent’s Cavern, a wonderful cave complex which, although only discovered in Victorian times, has artifacts dating back many millennia. Indeed the earliest of our relations can be identified from 350,000 years ago, although it was only 30,000 years ago our current iteration, Homo Sapiens, were recorded. There’s evidence of hyena, bears, and rhinoceros too. It’s a great place with a fascinating young guide who tried her best to crack quite subtle jokes throughout the tour. At one point she demonstrated a moss and animal fat lamp, all the early settler had, and then dampened it into total darkness - wonderful!

Walking back towards town we try to examine the so-called Agatha Christie Trail, but the town’s official website is really rather dodgy, listing the random items alphabetically rather than as a route, and then failing to provide a map. Of course Mr Google easily sorts that out, but also shows the route is ridiculous and references things we’ve already done several miles away so we discard that and just hike through town, up past the very modern church we’d noticed from afar on our previous walks, and then to Torre Abbey, the site of a monastery until Henry VIII got involved, and later as a nobleman’s home. Nowadays internally it’s mostly an art gallery with a few random other things, but the gardens hold the ruins. 

We then return to the coast via the railway station and seek afternoon tea at the Grand Hotel in lieu of lunch. Despite having an impressive facade, the entrance is very unassuming, and the lounge where tea is being served is rather threadbare. Fortunately the catering is on form and we have a lovely hour overlooking the bay, the ships, and catching entertaining snippets from three Very Merry Widows at a nearby table - only tier one in the south today. 

Walking back to via the marina for one last look, it’s beautiful with the late afternoon sunshine glinting on the hills surrounding Torquay. 

Presumably because lockdown is imminent, our drive home is very relaxed and we make the journey without even changing gear from just outside Torquay until we hit the Barnsley turnoff. If only driving was always like that, there would be far less bad language!!