Ruth Livingstone
My book: Walking the English Coast
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Winfield’s Award
Killer Cows: Cattle Safety
It could have ended so badly near Speaks Mill, Hartland
Incident number: 1269 Response ID: 329,908,514 Date of incident: March 3rd 2026 Location: Hartland near Speaks Mill on the SW coastal path Status: Group of walkers with two dogs on a lead on PRoW Dani’s story “Walking along the SW coastal path following an All Trails app trail when we come to a gate with […]
Dodford footpath leading to Bournheath – walker cornered by a mixed herd
Incident number: 1266 Response ID: 329,840,622 Date of incident: 18.06.26 Location: Field adjacent to top of Yarnold Lane, Dodford leading across to Bournheath ( to right hand side as driving out of Dodford Status: Lone walker with dogs on lead onPRoW Sarah’s Story “The cattle approached (they were a mixed herd of Charolais, Hereford, friesian […]
Trapped by cattle on weavers way near Halvergate
Incident number: 1264 Response ID: 329,834,345 Date of incident: 10.06.26 Location: On the Weavers Way footpath, between Stone Road, Halvergate and Berney Arms, shortly before the railway line. Status: Lone walker with no dog on PRoW RW’s story “I was walking on the path across the marshes, following the Weavers Way path. A group of […]
Tag Archives: hiking
145 Lee Bay to Ilfracombe
On a beautiful sunny day, I detour to avoid killer cows, muse on the disadvantages of munching sheep, and take the hard route down into Ilfracombe. Continue reading
144 Woolacombe to Lee Bay
I walk along cliffs where pirates and wreckers once lurked. Continue reading
143. Saunton to Woolacombe
I stumble across an Easter egg hunt, reach Baggy Point where I feel dizzy watching climbers on the rocks, and enjoy a long walk up Woolacombe Sands. Continue reading
142(b) Braunton Burrows and Saunton Sands
I am buzzed by a yellow helicopter while walking across miles of empty sands, along the edge of the largest dune system in England. At the end of the trek, for a moment, I regret the path not taken. Continue reading
142(a) Chivenor to Braunton Marsh
Horsey island is a beautiful open space of water and marshes. But I have to watch my feet continually. The bank is eroded in places, with gaps and overhanging mini-cliffs. Continue reading
141(pm) Barnstaple to Chivenor
It should be easy walking – flat and a good surface. But I find it hard work. A collection of boats ahead cheers me up. Not exactly a luxury marina, but a sort of informal mooring of everyday boats, the sort I enjoy looking at.
141(am) Instow, Barnstaple, Chivenor
I pass rusting wrecks and abandoned jetties. A sign tells me it is a “Wildlife Refuge” – although I see no sign of any life, wild or otherwise. Inland there are wet areas and clumps of grass. And a marching army of poles.
Continue reading
140(pm) Appledore to Bideford and Instow
In a small square is a statue of Charles Kingsley, historian and novelist, famous for The Water Babies and Westward Ho!. He spent some of his childhood years in Clovelly and some in the village of Barnack, close to my home town of Stamford. Continue reading
140(am) Westwood Ho! to Appledore
The sea gives way to mud flats and a sign. WARNING. The tidal waters and mudflats on this estuary can be dangerous if not treated with respect.
Continue reading
139b Peppercombe to Westwood Ho!
“The next section of shoreline is up-and-down,” my husband warns me. He has already walked this part of the coast, in order to meet me.
“How many ups-and-downs?” I ask. Continue reading
Ruth's Coastal Walk (UK) 