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24th November 2020
With the huge amount of history, the wild expanse of Exmoor and being the surfing capital of the UK, North Devon is a fascinating place, but did you know these five things about the region?
North Devon is home to the biggest sand dunes in England
Yes that’s right! The sand dunes at Braunton Burrows are the biggest in England! Apparently, in terms of acres, Braunton Burrows is roughly the same size as Mount Vesuvius! The Burrows are a beautiful place to visit, it is a designated area of outstanding natural beauty and is a nature reserve with many animals, birds and interesting plant life.
You’ll find the oldest golf course in England in North Devon
Again – totally true. The Golf Course in Westward Ho! was founded in 1864 making it the oldest of its kind. Known as the Royal North Devon Golf Club, the course is still a prestigious one to this day.
Not content with the oldest golf course…
North Devon has the UK’s oldest working light house
You’ll find it in Ilfracombe – though this is a technicality as it isn’t a traditional looking lighthouse, it’s actually a chapel. St Nicholas’ Chapel on Lantern Hill was built in 1361 and has been a beacon for over 650 years, so it totally counts as a lighthouse.
There’s an elephant in Barnstaple
No really, back in 1844, some rare straight tusked elephant fossils were discovered in Barnstaple and are now on show at Barnstaple Museum. It is thought that this kind of elephant lived in Europe and became extinct in the UK around 120,000 years ago!
They have their own bonfire tradition…
In Shebbear they have a very special tradition on bonfire night, while the rest of us are watching fireworks, every year they turn the town’s devil stone. We’re not really sure how this tradition began, but the story is that six men come together to turn the stone to help keep the devil at bay. The stone was supposedly thrown at the devil and has kept him away ever since.
What are your favourite facts about North Devon? Make sure to share them with us over on Facebook.
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