WAGFINDER
Walk · North Yorkshire

Tarka Trail: Barnstaple to Ashford

Barnstaple · EX31 2AU
Bickington A361 B3149 River Yeo River Taw River Taw N 880 YD © OpenStreetMap contributors
2.9MILES
1hON FOOT
20mCLIMB
Linear — plan the returnSHAPE
The route A-road B-road Lane Track Path Water Woodland
Off-road 95% 5% shares tarmac with cars
Field & moor path 5%Lane & track 90%Road with traffic 5%

Our drawing of the route, over road and path data from OpenStreetMap. It shows where the walk goes and what it goes through. It is not a survey and not a navigation aid — carry OS Explorer on the hill.

Starts at
Barnstaple railway station, on the Tarka Trail signs EX31 2AU
Finishes at
Ashford, by the Tarka Inn on the estuary roadLinear — plan how you get back
Parking
Pay-and-display at Barnstaple station and at the Civic Centre; the trail is also reachable on foot from the town centre in ten minutes
Directions to the start →

An easy 2.9 miles one way along the Taw estuary on a level tarmac path, an hour at an amble past saltmarsh and small rocky beaches to the Tarka Inn at Ashford, with almost no climbing at all. Start at Barnstaple station, which has the branch line from Exeter and a pay-and-display car park, and come back on the frequent Braunton bus from Ashford rather than retracing your steps. This is the sensible wet-weather and elderly-dog walk of North Devon, entirely traffic free and puddle flat, but note that the estuary mudflats are high tide roosts for overwintering birds and the council order bans dogs from land used as a roost between 1 October and 31 March, so keep to the trail and out of the saltmarsh in winter.

THE SMALL PRINTNorth Devon Council dog PSPO: between 1 October and 31 March dogs are not to be present on or near land used as a high tide roosting site for overwintering birds, which includes stretches of the Taw saltmarsh beside this path. Fixed penalty GBP 100.
REGION · NORTH YORKSHIRE
GRID · 51.0752, -4.0630
SOURCE · HTTPS://WWW.SOUTHWESTCOASTPATH.ORG.UK/WALKSDB/20/
Also in Barnstaple
2 MILES © OpenStreetMap contributors
Walk SOME LIMITS

Taw and Torridge estuary long day

EX31 2AU
11.6 MI · 5H · 93% OFF-ROAD

A big flat day of 11.6 miles, five hours or so, out along the old Bideford railway line to Fremington Quay and Yelland and down to the sands at Instow, then back the same way, with barely 40 metres of climbing on tarmac trail throughout. Start at Barnstaple station, cross the Long Bridge and pick up the Tarka Trail on the south bank; the 21 and 21A buses shadow the route so you can shorten it to a one-way walk at Fremington or Instow whenever the dog has had enough. It is a superb distance walk for a fit dog with no stiles and no livestock, water at the Fremington Quay café and Instow beach at the far end, but there is nowhere shaded on a hot day and the winter high tide roosts along the estuary are closed to dogs from 1 October to 31 March.

Water bowls
VERIFIED 29 JUL 2026 VIEW ›

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