Wonwell Beach, Bigbury-on-Sea, South Devon
Tidal sand beach on the east side of the Erme Estuary
Wonwell Beach is a tidal sand beach on the east side of the Erme Estuary. Coastgaurd's Beach and Mothecombe (Meadowsfoot) Beach are across the water. All three beaches are nice and big when the tide's out. To the north, you'll see the moors of Dartmoor National Park from which the River Erme flows.
We'd recommend walking the South West Coast Path for views to Burgh Island and Bigbury-on-Sea Beach.
Wonwell Beach is within the South Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty which covers top destinations such as Salcombe and Dartmouth. If you're in the area for a holiday, try also Ayrmer Cove (Beach) and Challaborough Beach, Bantham Beach and South Milton Sands/Thurlestone Sand (Beach). To the west, we'd suggest trips to The Warren (Noss Mayo) and Newton Ferrers, Wembury Bay and Plymouth.
Note that if you are walking the South West Coast Path and want to cross the Erme then you have to ford the river channel further up the beach. Refer to Ordnance Survey mapping for location detail. Clearly, you can't ford the river channel at high tide so plan to cross when the water is low at, or around, low tide. See below for advice from local information boards.
Location of Wonwell Beach
We've positioned Wonwell Beach on Google maps so zoom in on the 'Satellite' setting to see its location. We'd also recommend referring to the Ordnance Survey Explorer OL20 'South Devon' map for detail.
There's parking along the side of the road that leads from the Modbury area down to the estuary.
Crossing the River Erme and Estuary
Local information boards provide the following advice:
'The River Erme can usually be waded for 1 hour either side of low tide by crossing between the two slipways as shown on the photograph. However care should be taken as heavy rains or seas can make the crossing dangerous. The times of low water are shown in the table below. Also provided, for when it's not possible to ford the river, are directions for walking around it and phone numbers for local taxi firms.
Walking around the river. As there are no public footpaths running along the sides of the estuary this entails a 7 mile walk mainly on country lanes. To do this follow the lane uphill to Mothecombe village, bear right taking signs for the village of Holbeton. From Holbeton centre, head to the hamlet of Ford along Vicarage Hill. Bear right near Hole Farm on to the bridleway of the waymarked Erme-Plym Trail until you reach the A379. Turn right crossing Sequer's Bridge and take the first lane on your right, past Orcheton to Great Torr. Turn right then left and follow signs to Wonwell beach.'
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