Hay bales

I was out with the local walking group today on the second stage of the walk from the source of the River Otter to the mouth.  We started at Honiton where we waited for a bus to take us to Upottery our starting point.  Unfortunately the bus driver advised us to catch the next bus in 10 minutes time as we were such a large group (27) and there wouldn't be room for his regulars.  The next bus didn't materialise so we ended up driving to the starting point instead.  

Once there we set off fairly rapidly walking along the lanes and footpaths to eventually come to our first sighting of the River Otter which we then crossed.  The weather was very warm and humid with cloud cover all day and we spotted several different butterflies including a Comma and a Peacock.  Lunch was taken at the top of Dumpsdon Hill with panoramic views in almost all directions.  Descending the hill we then walked through various small hamlets including Combe Raleigh where we visited the 15th Century Church of St Nicholas.  The church contained some interesting artifacts including this door, see extra, constructed of two wooden leaves hinged in the middle.  From here we made our way back towards Honiton walking through this field with its hay bales laying on the ground.  We eventually reached the River Otter where some of our group took advantage of the adjacent pub for refreshment while others of us were driven back to pick up the cars from our starting point.

An interesting walk of over 10miles on a very warm and humid day.