What a difference weather can make to a place. One time when I walked through Braunton Burrows it was so hot you could fool yourself you were in the middle of the Sahara Desert as you passed trough the big dunes. On another day just after Christmas a few years ago, I began to wonder what hypothermia might feel like. 

Walking in locations during very different meteorological conditions can be like visiting two totally separate countries. Braunton Burrows is certainly no exception to that rule.

However, the Burrows never disappoint. The massive 2,400 acre area boasts no fewer than 477 different species of flowering plant, some of which are as rare as hen’s teeth. There are also 33 different species of butterflies and 18 different types of dragonfly and damselfly - not that any of them will be in evidence at this time of the year.

Never mind. Rain or shine, sun or snow, the Burrows is a fascinating place for a walk… One of the most weird and wonderful areas open to the public anywhere in the West Country. In fact, it is the second largest dune area in Britain. It belongs to the Christie Estate (same people who own Glynebourne of operatic fame) and they have been good enough to keep the place open to the public.

To get to the Burrows you take one of several lanes that meander across an area reminiscent of the Somerset Levels. Rhines divide the fields and reeds bend in the breeze. These lanes eventually join forces to terminate in a large car park which serves the main area of dunes.

An interpretation board tells you about the dune systems, which are far more complex than you may think - and also tells you not to enter the great demesne if the red flag is flying.

“It was like being in Afghanistan yesterday,” said a passer-by when I was walking here years ago. “Tanks, machine guns, helicopters. The lot…"

On another visit I was joined by three Burrows experts, and I asked them if the army’s right to hold manoeuvres in the dune system didn’t conflict with the fragile natural environment...

“We are actually very grateful for the MOD presence,” replied a man from the North Devon Biosphere. “It has helped to control or slow down the vegetation. It’s not bombs and things like you get in a place like Salisbury Plain - it’s the fact that they can come in with their four-wheel-drive vehicles. We are able to say to the army that we need that bit scuffed up a bit - so they drive their Land Rovers or Vikings over that part and it opens up the sand, which starts a succession which allows those early pioneer plants to come in. So the military presence has been really good for us over the last 60 years.”

The Army’s messing about in the dunes is also good news for walkers because easy-to-follow tracks have been created running hither and thither allowing you to explore just about every single corner of the huge sandy expanse. 

One of the walks I’ve done several times in the Burrows is to proceed along the track from the car park and, where it turns right under a sign saying "Coast Path", carry straight on, aiming at the nearest dune.

I recall that the first time I did this it was my intention to go to the sea. I thought you’d cross a dune and there it would be. But having crossed one huge Saharan hill, I was confronted by another even bigger one. And so on. The dunes go on and on.

Although you are free to roam, it is best to try and keep to the paths. This place is famous for its rich flora and is, according to one guide: “A species-rich calcareous dune grassland with good examples of a variety of important communities. The short turf areas are extremely rich in herbs and lichens, including a number of nationally rare species. Flowering herbs such as large thyme Thymus pulegioides, common restharrow Ononis repens and common bird’s-foot-trefoil Lotus corniculatus are locally dominant.”

Among all that foliage there are adders - in fact one year I was walking here I was told that no fewer than 13 dogs had been bitten by snake in the Burrows during a single summer.

Not surprisingly, I didn’t see any reptiles in the frost as I walked to the great beach that took me south past Airy Point towards Crow Point, and no slithery things were in evidence as I made my way back up north through the dunes. 

There are various ways of doing this return leg walk. The South West Coast Path takes a detour down through the wandering sands to dip a toe into the joint Taw and Torridge estuaries at a place marked on the OS map with the word ‘Groynes”. It’s as if the long distance trail wants to see where it will be many miles from now having marched all the way east up to Barnstaple, before returning west back around Instow then Bideford before gaining Appledore and Northam Burrows, whose dunes lie just half a mile away from the Braunton groynes.  

By following the coast path east through the dunes I skipped the cold and windy southerly corner of Crow Point and eventually came to the corner where the famous long distance trail enters the Torridge-Taw estuary zone. By following the path north you can simply march directly back up to the car park - or you may wish to meander through the semi-sheltered and rather wonderful dunes instead, which is more fun.

Fact File

Basic Hike: across the centre of Braunton Burrows to reach the flats of Saunton Sands, the south down the coast and to Airy Point before returning through the dunes.

Distance and going: five miles - easy going if you don’t mind walking in sand.

Recommended Map: Ordnance Survey Explorer 139.

LOCAL KNOWLEDGE

Soliloquy to Squires 

Squires Fish and Chips in Braunton are among the best in the west. A portion of their finest is such a “must” for me I’ve been known to travel miles just for a fresh fried fillet of their cod and some mushy peas. 

A Bow to Barnstaple

If you do go to Braunton Burrows, visit Barnstaple just a few miles away. There’s something charming about the town I’ve never been able to quite put my finger on - but please do ask why there are no longer any butchers in wonderful Butcher’s Row. To me that is one of the saddest high-street facts in this region.

Happy Among the Hulks

If you like old hulks or the long lost remains of old wooden boats, do take a detour around Crow Point and stroll to Velator Quay which is located just to the south of the village of Braunton at a point where the River Caen turns tidal.