Interesting information
Whilst in Instow, just past the post office, you’ll see the Instow signal box. Built in 1861 it has the distinction of being a listed building, very unusual for a signal box. Threatened with demolition when the railway closed, it was saved by the efforts of a local pressure group.
The railway was built in 1855 to link Bideford with Barnstaple and became part of the London and South Western Railway. Passenger services ended in the 1960s but the line was retained for clay trains into the 1980s. It now forms part of the Tarka Trail, a route following the wanderings of Tarka the Otter in the book of that name. This part of the railway is also used as part of the South West Coast Path as an alternative to the ferry crossing between Instow and Appledore.
Further down the track you’ll come across the entrance to Tapeley Gardens. Open to the public at certain times, the italian style gardens were established by the mother of John Christie, the founder of Glyndebourne.
Bideford has an attractive location, seen to advantage from the track. Described by Charles Kingsley as ‘the little white town’, it rises on the hillside above the estuary. The medieval Long Bridge enhances its setting. Its 24 arches are each of different span, said to be because local parishes paid different amounts towards its building, the span width reflecting the amount of money supplied.
