BUDE

This area contains some of the most spectacular coastal scenery in Britain. The weather is usually good and Bude is said to boast its own eco-climate with low rainfall and high sunshine hours. This climate attracts the walkers along the cliff tops.  The Sustrans Cycle route passes through this area. The Bude Canal provides excellent areas for birdwatchers, walkers and cyclists.

Award winning beaches including Widemouth and Summerleaze, wonderful places to spend a lazy summers day.  Summerleaze has a huge expanse of fine sand and at low tide you can explore Bude’s famous Breakwater, with ‘Tommy’s Pit” and the landmark of Barrel Rock. Widemouth has the Trans-Atlantic cable “hotline” which links Downing Street to the White house buried beneath the two mile stretch of sandy beach.

Summerleaze beach

Crooklets provides ideal conditions for surfers and there are regular surf and life saving demonstrations throughout the year.

Each August Bude holds the Bude Jazz Festival with New Orleans style street parades.  There is also the Cajun music festival and at Christmas there are torch light processions.

The town houses a very good museum in the former canal smithy.  Here some of the engineering feats and inventions of Sir Goldsworthy Gurney can be seen.

Bude Canal

Stratton is the parent town of Bude probably dating back to Roman Times. Stratton is best known for being a stronghold of King Charles and Royalists in the English Civil War, it was here the great battle of Stratton took place in 1643.  It was home of the Cornish giant Anthony Payne who was enlisted as a bodyguard for the Royalist Sir Bevil Grenville.  He lived and died in the Grenville manor house in Stratton (now the Tree Inn).

Families will find the small resort an ideal holiday base.  Miles of sandy beaches with life guards on duty during the summer months.  There is a tide washed open air pool by the beach.  This is a truly unspoilt area suitable for all ages. Here is just a small list of some of the activities that are available.  Golf, Walks, Quad biking, surfing, coarse fishing, kayaking, indoor and outdoor swimming, skate boarding, bowls, bird watching, canoeing, horse riding, tennis, paintball, fly fishing, pony trekking, crazy golf, museums, table tennis, wind surfing…..the list is endless!

On the north road out of Bude churchyards can be found with shipwrecked mariners buried by the sea-booted poet Parson Hawker.  Sit where he penned his verses in the hut tucked into the cliff.

Surfing is of course very popular as well as canoeing and kayaking on the river and Canal.  Abseiling down real cliffs has been a recent highlight.

Geologically the area has some of the finest features in the country.