Ivybridge

The original bridge over the Erme at Ivybridge was just wide enough for a single packhorse, and the 13th-century crossing that replaced it is still very narrow. When the railway arrived here in 1848, Brunel constructed an impressive viaduct over the Erme valley. It was made of wood, however, so that too was replaced in 1895 by an equally imposing stone structure. The town grew rapidly in the 1860s when a quality paper-making mill was established to make good use of the waters of the Erme, and more recently Ivybridge has continued to grow as a commuter town for Plymouth.

Serious walkers will know Ivybridge as the southern starting point of the Two Moors Way, the spectacular but gruelling 103-mile path across both Dartmoor and Exmoor, finishing at Barnstaple. The trek begins with a stiff 1000 feet climb up Butterdon Hill, just outside Ivybridge – and that’s the easy bit!