I was all out from the Cricket at 9.30 after an excellent breakfast. I am always on the lookout for unusual wall art so I enjoyed this on a house just along from the pub.
A surprisingly steep ascent took me over a hill and down into Torcross with the huge lake of Slapton Ley behind.
Torcross was a sad sight - even though protected by a modern sea wall, the row of houses along the seafront had suffered in last winter's storms. The pub was still in operation but most of the houses were either boarded up or in the process of being repaired,
although one of the boarded-up houses did have some more tasteful decoration...
The storm had also taken out part of the A379 coastal road and a large area was fenced off for what looked like some serious engineering works.
After a level walk beside Slapton Ley, a long steep ascent to Strete and some more up and down took me to Blackpool Sands for a swim and a refuelling stop for coffee and cake.
A little road walking through Stoke Fleming led to a fine section of open cliff top walking leading round to the Dart estuary, with a grand view across to the rocky island of the Mew Stone and tomorrow's walk.
There is another castle on the far bank, which is owned by the Landmark Trust and can be rented as a holiday let. Maybe that needs to go on the bucket list.
From the castle it was an easy road walk into the centre of town and my digs in the rather grand Royal Castle Hotel, which featured a big open staircase decorated with a large collection of paintings and these old room service bells.
Distance today 19km.
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