Ilfracombe is a lovely town on the north coast of Devon, with a small harbour surrounded by steep cliffs. The big attraction for us, is that there is a rocky cove with a shale beach - totally unsuitable for normal family beach activities, it is available for people with dogs to go and have fun - and boy, do they! We took our two little Shih Tzu puppies down there and they wore themselves out, playing chase around the rocks, and behaving like mountain goats.
It's also a good spot to watch cormorants fishing
This doggy paradise is at one end of the town, and accessed by a flight of step. Closer to the harbour and town centre, the sandy beaches which ring the town can be accessed only through tunnels bored through the surrounding rocks.
In 1823 local entrepreneurs carved 6 tunnels through the solid rock to provide access to Ilfracombe's sandy beaches. The creation of beach access lifted Ilfracombe from a sleepy fishing port to a popular seaside resort town. The entrepreneurs hired Welsh miners to carve their way by hand through the rock, giving access to three tidal bathing pools. Two of the pools were set aside for ladies and one for gentlemen.
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