Clovelly

Clovelly in Devon tumbles down a steep, cobbled street to a small harbour, whose quay was completed by George Cary in the late 16th century. No vehicles are allowed on the main street; goods are carried on sledges, a job once done by donkeys. Since the 13th century the village has belonged to just three families in turn: the Giffards, the Carys and, since 1738, the Hamlyns. The writer Charles Kingsley lived here as a child from 1831 to 1836, and his novel Westward Ho! (1855) made the village famous.

Admission is charged at the visitor centre at the top of the village; the tour includes the Fisherman's Cottage and the Kingsley Museum, among other things. Allow two to three hours for the descent, the sights and the steep climb back, and wear sturdy shoes. The street is unsuitable for wheelchairs. The Hobby Drive, a carriage road begun during the Napoleonic Wars, makes a pleasant walk along the hillside. The village lies about 14 km (as the crow flies) west of Bideford, off the A39.