"Appledore - Where the boats outnumber the cars!" Appledore by johngayton

Appledore Travel Guide: 13 reviews and 58 photos

An Archetypal Fishing Village

Less than a year ago I was cycling down the Tarka Trail here in North Devon and stopped off for a beer at the village of Instow. Instow sits on the eastern bank of the the River Torridge's estuary where the river meets its twin sister The Taw before departing for the Atlantic Ocean. Instow overlooks its own twin village on the other side of the bay, Appledore, with whom it shares many events such as their joint Regatta. As I sat outside the Wayfarer Inn with my cigarette and beer, watching the world go by, I tried to remember whether I had ever been to Appledore or not.

Indeed when I came to write my little page here on VT about Instow I did have in mind a visit to Appledore for this summer, still trying to remember whether or not I'd visited sometime in the past. All I'd intended was a day-trip, parking my bike at Bideford and taking the bus up and down the hill - hills not being my strong point when cycling!

LIttle did I know then that instead of being a day-trip, Appledore was to become yet another of my Devon-life trips. So here I am, living and working in yet another of Devon's undeveloped little gems where the boats really do outnumber the cars!

The village has been a fishing port since time immemorial and in more recent times ( ie. from the 19th century ) has also become a relatively important shipbuilding centre and is in fact England's only extant commercial shipbuilder. The present-day Appledore is still very much a fishing port with both inshore boats and deep-sea trawlers landing their catches which include sea bass, bream, mackerel as well as a variety of shellfish.

In addition to being a working port Appledore also has its fair share of leisure marine activities with yacht moorings, speedboat rides and fishing trips predominating and also has its own lifeboat station with both an inshore and a Tyne-class All Weather Lifeboat.

A Room With A View

Instow From My Bedroom Window

Where I'm living and working at the moment is on Appledore's Quay where (outside of the pubs) it all happens but happens at a pretty relaxed, typically North Devon, pace. The main activity for our visitors is to stroll up and down the quay slurping an ice-cream from the famous local manufacturer "Hockings ice-cream" whose van is parked up at the top end by the car park. For the less energetically inclined there are ample benches along the quayside to relax and enjoy the forementioned ice-cream and watch the world go by.

Despite being one of Devon's most stunningly beautiful villages Appledore manages to escape the mass-tourism of places such as Clovelly or Lynmouth. It does however have its moments and the four main annual events: The Visual Arts Festival (last week in May); The Appledore Regatta in July, the local Carnival (mid-August) and the relatively new Appledore Book Festival (end Sept to early Oct), all attract good crowds - tips will be forthcoming!

A Typical "Street" Scene

Pros and Cons

Pros:The Pubs Never Seem To Shut!
Cons:I Have To Work The Following Mornings!
In a nutshell:A Life-style Choice Rather Than A Career One!

Intro Updated Jun 2, 2009
Add to Trip Planner (?)
Report Abuse

Reviews (13)

The Saturday's Events Board. - Appledore

Appledore's Visual Arts Festival Things to Do (7)

This is an annual event which takes place during the last week of May/early June and is one of the village's main... more travel advice

Docton Court - One Of The Box Offices - Appledore

The Appledore Book Festival Things to Do (7)

This little festival came about when the local library was slated for closure in 2006 by cost-cutting bureaucrats of... more travel advice

Try The Hocking's Ice Cream Things to Do (7)

Appledore's definitely the sort of place to come to to relax and get away from the day-to-day pressures of life and just... more travel advice

The Appledore and Instow Regatta Things to Do (7)

This annual celebration of all things nautical takes place at the end of July or beginning of August (depending on... more travel advice

Restaurants (2)
See All The Best Breakfast in Town!
Favorites (2)
See All Appledore's Ghost in the (VT) Machine

Travelogues (2)

1 - 2 of 2

Comments (20)

yumyum Mar 14, 2012 at 1:19 PM Report Abuse

Lovely page! You are so lucky that you always live near the sea :-) And now even with free-range rabbits ;-)
hunterV Jun 9, 2011 at 9:09 AM Report Abuse

John, your pages do make interesting reading...Thanks for your creativity and style!.....
Callavetta Jan 31, 2011 at 9:26 AM Report Abuse

You should have won restaurant reviewer. There are none better.
SabrinaSummerville Jan 30, 2011 at 3:07 PM Report Abuse

Eggs Benedict are my absolutely favourite breakfast ever.....and I haven't had them since forever.....
Arkeolog Apr 21, 2010 at 1:49 AM Report Abuse

It's a beautiful place and your tips and photos are useful. Great job.
nickandchris Apr 21, 2010 at 1:43 AM Report Abuse

What a wonderful page, excellent, well written tips from a "local."Looks a delightful place. Thanks for rating Moniaive.
Orkaena Mar 12, 2010 at 8:52 AM Report Abuse

Surfing with Google Earth, I found out the pub of the homepage pic (with your partner the frog), and I marked sat image with "The John Gayton Pub", after that I surfed to 9 The Quay, and marked it as well, references for the future!!
KittyLou Dec 12, 2009 at 9:34 AM Report Abuse

What a beautiful spot to call home. Maybe some day I'll be able to visit & try the local ice cream.
zanzooni Nov 19, 2009 at 7:07 PM Report Abuse

I would love to eat at where you work! Forget the crab balls, I'll make you crab cakes to die for!! ~
icunme Sep 9, 2009 at 5:53 AM Report Abuse

Yet another regret - I've missed the ghost - going on to beerbeerbeer.com in search. After a couple years in Italy, I'd better get to Appledore while I still fit through those narrows. Grazie for great entertainment!