Taw-Torridge Estuary
Natural History of the Taw-Torridge Estuary
Braunton Burrows, Northam Burrows.
| "Here is an excellent series of wildlife and nature guidebooks. They impress by their clarity - bold maps - and clear directions - as well as by the highly informative text, pleasant drawings and dramatic photographs. There is also a refreshing element of challenge to the reader. A delightful series, full of variety". (Interpretation Journal) |
Braunton Burrows
Thematic Trails 1996. A5. 47 pages. 30 illust. £2.95
A combined reference book and trail designed for visitors seeking serious explanation of this large unique dune environment which is now an International Biosphere Reserve. The circular walk through this important sand dune system includes a transect from the beach, through the fore-dunes, slacks, parabolic dunes, grassland and woodland.
NOTE: Coastal sand dunes are a dynamic mobile environment and so it is no surprise that the map contours of the sand dunes have dated somewhat, and should be treated with some caution, as some predate the second edition of this booklet, published in 2003. The dynamic nature of this wind-blown environment is thus made plain. However, it is useful to take a compass with you and identify one or two landmarks that allow you to orientate yourself. If lost then walking west will take you to the beach and walking east will eventually take you to the track which heads north-south passing the car park (A).
WILD FLOWERS OF BRAUNTON BURROWS Mary Breeds 2004
48 pages, 210 mm X 210 mm. Over 140 colour photos of plants and Burrows landscapes.£3.95
Braunton Burrows is one of the largest expanses of sand dunes in Britain. This book is both an introduction to, and a celebration of, the unique rich variety of plants that grow there. It is paradise for botanists because of the great diversity of species and the rarity of many of them. It is a pleasure to walk through these dunes, booklet in hand, to discover flowers and plants that you have never seen before. This admirably illustrated book neatly complements the exploration of the dunes set out in Janet Keene’s Braunton Burrows Ecology Trail, see above.
| Locally you can buy Braunton Burrows Ecology & The Cliffs of Saunton at: Barnstaple Tourist Information Centre, The Square, Barnstaple Ex 32 8LN T: 01271 – 375000. |
Northam Burrows
NORTHAM BURROWS, estuary environments by Janet and Peter Keene
ISBN 978-0-948444-33-3 Thematic Trails 1997. A5. 48 pages. 30 illust. £2.95
A three-mile circular walk examines a mosaic of estuary habitats including pebble ridge, sand dunes, salt marsh and burrows pasture lands. The approach stresses the interrelationships between ecology, landscape, coastal defence and coastal management.
NORTHAM BURROWS, a decision-making exercise
by Peter Jollands.
Thematic Trails 1997. A5. 12 pages.
This booklet, designed for tutor use with the above trail, examines management problems associated with Northam Burrows and includes an appropriate exercise for visiting students. Free, on request, with any order by post or 10p via PayPal.
NORTHAM BURROWS, a mixture of memories and facts
by Philip Waters ISBN 979-1-898546-76-3 North Devon Museum Trust. Appledore. £4
A5. 64 pages, 29 illustrations.
Northam Burrows including chapters on the Lords of the Manor, golf, freehold, grazing, horse-riding, sea defences, potwallopers, salt water inundation. This history is interspersed with the memories of Philip Waters, a local resident of long-standing.
WESTWARD HO! ECOLOGY TRAIL: beach sand-dune, salt marsh Janet Keene
ISBN 978-0-948444-02-9 Thematic Trails 1985. A5. 33 pages. 38 illustrations. £1.50
The circular route around Northam Burrows includes the slipway, beach, clay beds, pebble ridge, sand-dunes, Greysands, the Skern, salt marsh and mud flats; returning to Westward Ho! via the grasslands of Northam Burrows. The trail is suitable for both holiday and school orientated use. It uses a question and answer approach with panels for notes so may be regarded as an expendable booklet but it also lends itself to multiple duplication. In a later Thematic Trails booklet, Northam Burrows, estuary environments, the same author examines a wider a range of issues of concern in this estuary landscape.
| Locally you can buy most North Devon Thematic Trails at: Bideford: Walter Henry’s Bookshop, 12 High Street. Bideford. EX39 2AE T: 01237 – 425727 Northam Burrows Visitor Centre, Northam Burrows Country Park, Northam, Bideford EX39 1LY T: 01237-479708 Barnstaple Tourist Information Centre, The Square, Barnstaple EX32 8LN T: 01271 - 375000. |