Salcombe History Society

This is a great site for seeing the past characters and history of Salcombe. Originally started on Facebook there were so many photos that it spawned The Salcombe History Society.

This is well worth an hour of so of scrolling through the photos and seeing how Salcombe has changed over the years.

Enjoy!

So Disappointing...

I was excited in the run up...I had a table booked, the tide would be in and I'd heard good things about The Island Street Bar...

I arrived and the bar looked stylish and very different for Salcombe, the view across the water to the meadows and beyond was great, I had a lovely cold beer and the menu looked exciting.

My excitement was gradually sucked away...the service was absolutely appalling, we waited over 50 minutes between starters and main courses and it wasn't even that busy. Our wine just about managed to be served with our main courses, but we were almost finished. A steak had to be sent back as it was "blue" when it should have been "medium"...

As for my food, the starter was fantastic, Crab Chowder, very very good! But that is where the praise stops. My main was, at best, average and it was most definitely an utter rip off; Sea Bass, £17.50...OK I agree that is what you would pay in most places these days, however, in most places you would get the whole fish or 2 or 3 fillets but Salcombe being Salcombe I got 1(!!) exceedingly small fillet. I was gobsmacked, 1 fillet and a few green beans for £17.50! What nonsense.

The final disappointment was not being able to fit in a desert and coffee despite being there for 2 hours...in the end we gave up got the bill and left.

My enthusiasm for what should have been a great restaurant had disappeared and I was left feeling, that the food was over priced, the service was utter rubbish but most importantly I was still HUNGRY!

North & South Sands, Salcombe's Hidden Gems

Just how far has North Sands come in the last 2 to 3 years! South Sands has always been the nicer of the 2 "sands" with its golden beach and smart hotels, but just lately North Sands has really come to the party.

The Winking Prawn is one of my favourite places in Salcombe. The outside food is great and the summer BBQ is unbeatable! If the sun is out this is the place to be for food, beer or a coffee. The kids love the dressing up box and the huge beach at low tide, whilst the adults can relax knowing their kids are pretty much as safe as they can be anywhere these days. There is a green for balls sports and tennis facilities behind the WP.

One noticeable recent change are the houses overlooking North Sands; Sand Hills Road has always been up market and pricey but the once dowdy North Sands now has some amazing properties including one of Salcombe's finest; the large and well designed wooden/glass combo sat proudly behind The Winking Prawn boasts some amazing views and sits sympathetically within its surroundings. Rumour has it that this build was originally commissioned by the guy who ran off with Robert Maxwell's pension fund...or something like that?!!?!?

There is a burgeoning water sports scene and you can even get a half decent surf at North Sands or if you are brave and the conditions are right you can paddle out to The Bar where the waves really jack up if there is a nice low sitting over The Atlantic/English Channel, SUP's are also a common sight in summer. Messing around in the surf on a kayak is also great fun.

If you want a quieter beach then Splat's Cove is only a short walk and a bit further along the coast path you can access Starehole Bay beaches at low tide. For the more energetic there is a great run from Bolt Head to Bolberry and back along the old coach road to Malborough finishing with a great off road section bringing you down the bridal path into the back of North Sands.

If you take what North Sands has to offer and the look at South Sands with it's superb water sports school, great new hotel and the lovely beach then it's a hard place to trump when the sun is out. If I was a visitor I would ditch town and it's overcrowded streets for the calm serenity of the North/South Sands oasis. There are some great summer rental properties at all levels of budget.

It's even great in winter when you can watch the waves crashing over the beach wall when the SW gales blow in.

Salcombe just gets better ad better!

What does Salcombe mean to you?

I was sitting in the sun a few days ago thinking about times past in Salcombe and how many people, like us, think Salcombe is the best place in the world. I ended up trying to put together my "Top 5" list of things that Salcombe will always mean to me:

Here goes...

1. Rocking nights, courtesy of "Bob" at the Ferry, during the early 90's, when everyone knew everyone and you'd never here a cross word as copious pints of snakebite and black were seen off; Don Mclean belted out "American Pie" from the juke box and the night ended with pizza and pasties when the bakery opened as the pubs shut.
2. Sailing Optimists on Tuesday nights at cadets, and being stupidly excited when the wind blew hard. Followed by coke and crisps at the Yacht Club whilst your parents sank a few beers.
3. Still having as my best mates the friends I made at Salcombe Primary School and all still meeting up every summer in Salcombe, even though many no longer live in Salcombe.
4. Playing volley ball all summer during the holidays on Smalls Cove, there was never a day when the volley ball net wasn't up! There seemed to be a lot more sun back then!
5. The unbeatable beauty & tranquility of sitting on Small's on a summers evening with the tide full in and the beach gradually emptying as the wind dies and the estuary becomes a mill pond.

Roll on summer!!!!

What does Salcombe mean to you...