March 11th 2008 Continued…

We arrived in Teignmouth some 5-10 minutes later, and headed through the town to the sea front, quite a lot of avian activity here, likely due to the availability of sea creatures being displaced by the storm.

The sea appeared much more calmer here due to the gently slopped beach, although still enough to make a crash on the sand and the wind was still very strong.

At the end of the beach we came across what appears to be an old tower or lighthouse, and behind the Lynton House Hotel.

At the end is the mouth of the river, and the road bridge. We then made our way back along the Sea Front.

Now onward to the Sea Wall between Teignmouth and Holcombe.

Day 2, March 11th 2008.

The original plan was to visit Holcombe and explore this hilltop village, however the high winds and torrential rain made this not so appealing, and we ventured to the Dawlish Sea Front while pondering the next move.

The waves were quite strong and coming up high on the wall, taking a few passers by a little by surprise, 2 were almost washed off the wall right on that very corner. The seagull was not too concerned however.

This one took all of us by surprise, and came a little close, but not enough to get wet however.

We moved a bit further along, and slightly further away from the edge. I should point out that these shots were taken with an certain amount of zoom, and so I was not as close as it appears from the pictures.

Pondering complete, we made our way to the station, the high footbridge provide a good photo op…

We then awaited the South West Trains Service to Paignton, provided by the 3 car Class 159 no 159108. This would take us just one stop to Teignmouth.

Day 1 London to Dawlish, March 10th 2008.

Early March is not the time most would choose for a trip to the seaside, however this was a property scouting trip, and the idea was simple – see a place at its worst and if its good, then it can only get better. Thats a fine plan, except 2 days before we’re due to depart the news headlines are filled with severe weather warnings and the prediction of the worst storms for 30 years, and Devon is where its going to hit full force first.

With no option for a refund on cancellation, and taking the above idea to the extreme, we set off early morning on March 10th by train. It took some 4 hours to make the trip to Dawlish, first to London, then across to Paddington, then down to Exeter St. Davids and finally the short hop to Dawlish. Upon arrival the weather was not soo bad, however we were assured that earlier that day the main line had been closed due to the sea coming up onto the track, and the proof of this was the amount of debris laying all over the street, mostly sand and gravel washed up from the beach. A few hours were taken up by the need to search for a power cable for the laptop having discovered it had been left behind, and then there was time to check-in and sort a few other things out, which basically meant not alot was achieved that evening, and so dinner was taken in a local pub just up the hill.