Tension was in the air due to strikes by railroad workers planned for today, since you can see by the title that trains featured large in our day. Luckily, our routes were unaffected so the day went without a hitch.

Train 1: Exeter to Totnes, a Saxon town overlooked by a Norman motte and bailey castle still in good condition. Only time for a glimpse of the town proper as we had a riverboat to catch.

Boat 1: Totnes to Dartmouth via river ferry. Ever-changing views of the English countryside plus witty commentary by the captain (guaranteed to be mostly true!)

Dartmouth itself is a bustling tourist destination with gardens, a harbor, shops of all kinds, and – of course – a castle. Nick enjoyed the full-size Newcomen steam engine housed in the tourist information building. The family explored the coastal defenses in the area, representing a range of technology from the earliest cannons to WWII artillery. Dartmouth Castle was nicely restored with wooden floors on multiple levels and interpretive displays. It also afforded great views back to Dartmouth and Kingswear across the river.

Boat 2: Dartmouth to Kingswear via ferry, a journey of under five minutes!

Train 2: Kingswear to Paignton by steam locomotive. From the inside it was hard to tell what was pulling the train except when tunnels trapped the steam and smoke and of course there was the characteristic chuff-chuff-chuff…

We didn’t see much in Paignton itself, but had a lovely family dinner at the newly-opened Oak Tree, based on a recommendation of a friendly gent at the train station.

Train 3: Paignton to Exeter, followed by a leisurely walk back along Howell Road (Exeter’s longest) back to our B&B.