Combe Martin (c) Lee, Flickr (CC BY 2.0)
- Credit: Archant
Devon is as beautiful underwater as it is above. Devon Life highlights the best places to discover our county’s hidden depths with six great places for crabbing, rockpooling and diving
1) Wembury beach - and beyond
Wembury in South Devon is a magnet for wildlife and is thought to be one of the UK s best spots to see marine animals. The beach and surrounding coastline form a Marine Conservation Area (MCA) and a Special Area of Conservation (SAC), so it s well protected.
Wembury Marine Centre has interactive displays and staff organise rockpool safaris to showcase exactly how special this area is. Recent rockpool sightings have included a long-spined sea scorpion, squat lobster, a Montagu s crab and a shanny. Further out to sea, Hilsea Point and also the wreck of former fishing trawler the Glen Strathallen are popular areas with divers. Expect to see cuttlefish and scallops, as well as bib and wrasse.
The sale has been described by Cristian Beadman of Duke’s as “arguably the most important collection of English country-house furniture to come to auction in recent decades”. Such was the thrill when viewing opened at the house on Saturday, some of the antiques aficionados who flocked there took the opportunity to make a day of it, and combine an inspection of the furniture and artworks with a picnic in the grounds afterwards.
The real fun starts this morning, however, when the sale gets underway at Duke’s. The current owner of the house, John Evetts (grandson of Churchill’s military adviser and confidante General Lord Ismay, who also lived at the house) is Furnishings Manager for the Landmark Trust, and travels far and wide sourcing pieces for period properties. His eye for interior decoration is evident in his own considerable collection, which includes pieces passed down through his family, who lived in the house for 100 years, along with some fine examples of country-