A Visit to Lundy Island

Lundy Island is an isolated granite outcrop of rock that lies some twelve miles or so off the North Devon coast, with nothing between it and America. The island is three miles long and just over half a mile wide, and it welcomes over 20,000 tourists each year who sail to it from Bideford or Ilfracombe, some staying in the 23 holiday properties the island has to offer. The island’s name means Puffin Island in Old Norse.

In 1969, British millionaire Jack Hayward bought the island and donated it to the National Trust, ensuring its preservation for future generations to enjoy. However, the island has had a turbulent history, being used by monks, pirates and farmers over the years and has changed hands many times. Lundy Island was granted to the Knights Templar by Henry II in 1160. The Templars were an important maritime force in North Devon at this time, probably because of the threat from Norse sea raiders. However, ownership was disputed by the Marisco family, who had been on the island since the reign of King Stephen, using it for piracy, carrying out raids on passing ships and along the North Devon coast.

In 1238, William de Marisco was implicated in a plot against Henry III and, in 1242, was captured and taken to London, where he was found guilty and hung, drawn and quartered. Henry then built the Marisco Castle to control the island, and the building can still be seen today.

I have been lucky enough to visit Lundy Island twice. The first time was in 1970 with my boyfriend, Bryan (who became my husband a couple of years later). The weather on that occasion was warm and sunny, and the water was still as a millpond. The journey took a couple of hours each way, and the passengers were rowed from the boat to the shore in rowing boats.

My next visit to the island was in 1992, accompanied again by Bryan, our youngest son, David, and his friend, Joe. Earlier that term, David’s teacher had taken the class on a trip along the North Devon coast on MS Oldenburg, and our son won a quiz spotting things along the way. His prize was a trip to Lundy. Once again, the trip was on MS Oldenburg, and this is a photo of it leaving the harbour.

This time, however, the weather was not so kind, and although it was July, there was some doubt as to whether the crossing to Lundy would go ahead or not. Fortunately, it did, and the passengers were warned that it would be a rough trip, particularly as the ship crossed the bar. This seemed hard to believe as the sun was shining as we left Bideford, and it seemed like a nice day. However, we decided to sit in the centre of the ship as we believed this would be the most stable place, and this proved to be a wise choice. At this time, I did not know what the “bar” was – so I checked it out later.

The Bideford Bar is considered one of the most dangerous stretches of water in the United Kingdom by the RNLI. Although it sounds like a good place to enjoy a pint of beer, it is actually a sandbank that forms a barrier to the Taw and Torridge Estuary and runs from the South Western tip of Saunton Sands to Northam Burrows. The water is shallow, the sandbank constantly changing, and great care is needed to cross it and is best done at high tide. In the past, the bar was responsible for many shipwrecks, and over the centuries, many hundreds of sailors have lost their lives there. The photo is of the new Bideford Bridge.

We were indeed fortunate to have chosen to sit in the centre of the boat for crossing the bar was extremely rough, and one poor lady, dressed only in a strappy t-shirt and shorts, was drenched from head to foot as water shot up through the hole that the anchor chain goes down through. The crew were kept busy for the rest of the journey, handing out sick bags as the waves were incredibly high and many passengers were ill. I suspect many wished they had not set sail, but luckily, our party was all OK. The photo shows Bideford Quay as we departed.

It was with some relief that many of the passengers disembarked on the beach at Lundy. From the photograph, you would never believe the rough journey we had undertaken to get there.

From the beach, it was a steep climb to the top of the cliffs.

Like most of the passengers, we made a beeline for The Marisco Tavern, where we planned to eat lunch before exploring the island. The pub is still named after the early lords who owned the island. We explored St Helen’s Church, which is still used for weddings, funerals and special occasions. We also visited the Lundy Post Office, where we bought Puffin postage stamps, found only on the island, and sent some postcards. These postage stamps have to be stuck on the back of letters, leaving room for regular stamps on the front. The mail is taken from Lundy to Bideford Post Office and then onwards to its destination. The photo shows The Marisco Tavern with the church in the background.

The rugged West coastline of Lundy Island overlooks the Atlantic Ocean.

More breathtaking scenery.

Lundy Island is, of course, rich in bird life, and the scenery was beautiful. Unfortunately, we did not see any puffins or seals.

The rather windswept Clayton family sitting on the steps outside St Helen’s Church.

Our time on the island passed all too quickly, and it was soon time to board the ship again. The day had been cold and windy, but we had no rain and were fortunate. The landscape would be inhospitable in a storm.

The voyage home was, if anything, even rougher than the journey to the island, and it was very cold. This is our son, David (on the right), enjoying a mug of cocoa to warm him up!

An excellent day and a unique experience.

0 Comments

Submit a Comment

If you would like the latest updates, please sign up to my newsletter