I can see a pattern emerging here, as the morning was a little grey, but fortunately breakfast here includes a very sunny fruit salad to brighten the mood! Today Chris and I are celebrating our 6th wedding anniversary, so a boat trip is an essential part of our celebrations, having held our wedding reception on a boat on the Thames. Since then, we have celebrated on a Bateau Mouche on the Seine, Dolly the paddle steamer in Phoenix Arizona, the Mayflower along the River Avon at Stratford, Daffodil round Cardiff Bay, and even a Halloween Boat Trip in Provo Utah!
We were spoilt for choice with boating options in Dartmouth and ended up taking four boat trips during the day, starting with the Christie Belle upstream towards Totnes.
We passed Britannia Royal Naval College where the Queen first met Prince Philip …
… then continued along the river …
… looking back to Dartmouth.
We stopped at the quaint quay at Greenway …
… then crossed the river on the Dittisham Belle …
… to look round the village of cute rental cottages …
… and have coffee in the Anchor Stone Cafe where we watched the world float by.
When we were ready to leave, we followed instructions and rang for the ferry and walked back to the jetty to wait.
Our next destination was Greenway the lovely summer home of Agatha Christie set high on a hill overlooking the Dart.
Agatha Christie and her family were huge collectors of all sorts of things from silver and snuff boxes to …. and there was evidence of this everywhere. I hadn’t realised her husband Max was an archaeologist who spent many seasons digging in Syria and she often went too, obviously giving her ideas for her books. The gardens gave great views of the river …
… and then we reached the boathouse where she enjoyed sitting to review manuscripts and even set one of her murders here, in Dead Man’s Folly … which I picked up a a souvenir in the gift shop!
We walked back along the River Dart Trail and considering it was along the river, there was a surprising amount of up and down along the way!
Fortunately we didn’t see any adders, but we did pass the Higher Car Ferry …
… and were were lucky to see the steam train go by as we approached Kingswear …
… then crossed the river back to Dartmouth on the foot ferry, clocking up another nine miles!
We walked back past the band stand and the only Station Restaurant that hasn’t seen a train – it was built as a waiting room for the Kingswear Station on the other side!
The Spice Bazaar was recommended for dinner and it was one of the best selection of curries we have had in ages. All in all a lovely way to celebrate our anniversary.
Off Travelling Together 