Bideford: North Devon Port on the River Torridge With a Medieval Bridge and Maritime Past
Bideford sits on the west bank of the River Torridge in North Devon, about nine miles southwest of Barnstaple. The population is around 17,000. The town was an important port from the 16th to the 18th centuries, trading in tobacco, pottery, and fish with the American colonies and southern Europe. Sir Richard Grenville, the Elizabethan naval commander, sailed from Bideford. The Long Bridge, which crosses the Torridge with 24 arches of varying widths (reportedly built to match the original medieval timber spans), is one of the town's defining features. Charles Kingsley wrote much of "Westward Ho!" in Bideford, and a statue of him stands on the quay. The town's pannier market still operates on Tuesdays and Saturdays in the market hall off the High Street.
Bideford sits on the A39 Atlantic Highway, which connects north to the M5 at Barnstaple via the North Devon Link Road, and southwest towards Bude and Cornwall. There is no railway station; the nearest is Barnstaple, the terminus of the Tarka Line from Exeter. The MS Oldenburg sails from Bideford Quay to Lundy Island in the Bristol Channel during the summer season. Westward Ho!, the only place name in England with an exclamation mark, is a couple of miles to the northwest on the coast. For those considering adult companionship in the North Devon area, Bideford's position on the A39 gives road access to Barnstaple, Ilfracombe, and the wider region.
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Bideford sits on the west bank of the River Torridge in North Devon, about nine miles southwest of Barnstaple. The population is around 17,000. The town was an important port from the 16th to the 18th centuries, trading in tobacco, pottery, and fish with the American colonies and southern Europe. Sir Richard Grenville, the Elizabethan naval commander, sailed from Bideford. The Long Bridge, which crosses the Torridge with 24 arches of varying widths (reportedly built to match the original medieval timber spans), is one of the town's defining features. Charles Kingsley wrote much of "Westward Ho!" in Bideford, and a statue of him stands on the quay. The town's pannier market still operates on Tuesdays and Saturdays in the market hall off the High Street.
Bideford sits on the A39 Atlantic Highway, which connects north to the M5 at Barnstaple via the North Devon Link Road, and southwest towards Bude and Cornwall. There is no railway station; the nearest is Barnstaple, the terminus of the Tarka Line from Exeter. The MS Oldenburg sails from Bideford Quay to Lundy Island in the Bristol Channel during the summer season. Westward Ho!, the only place name in England with an exclamation mark, is a couple of miles to the northwest on the coast. For those considering adult companionship in the North Devon area, Bideford's position on the A39 gives road access to Barnstaple, Ilfracombe, and the wider region.
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