The twin towns of Lynton and Lynmouth are located on the spectacular North Devon coast, on the edge of the Exmoor National Park, with Lynton at the top of the cliff and Lynmouth at the bottom - where the two rivers, East Lyn and West Lyn merge in a rocky gorge before flowing into the sea.
So precarious was Lynmouth's position at the foot of this normally beautiful gorge, that on 15th August 1952, after an unusually long spell of rain, the course of these two normally picturesque rivers became a raging torrent, crashing through Lynton and down the valley to Lynmouth, destroying everything in it's path. This terrible disaster, which so sadly claimed many lives in just a few hours, promptly emblazoned the names of Lynton and Lynmouth onto newspapers throughout the world, and in strange twist of fate, gave the towns a new lease of life, as the rebuilding of half the town, coupled with curiosity and much improved flood defences, drew in even more visitors, who in turn were as captivated by this enchanting area of the English coast, as the original Victorian 'tourists' had been when they first 'discovered' Lynton and Lynmouth in the previous century.
Although the ancient town of Lynton and it's harbourside twin of Lynmouth had for generations been one of the main export routes for lime and import routes for coal from Wales, and as such enjoyed relative prosperity, it was the money from wealthy Victorian visitors and settlers in the towns, such as George Newnes, whose city publishing house boasted such popular publications as Titbits and The Strand in it's catalogue, which brought real prosperity and stability to the area.
The Lynton and Lynmouth Cliff Railway, one of the most memorable and popular features of the towns, was ingeniously constructed as a direct result of the need for this new influx of visitors, many of whom arrived by sea ferry to Lynmouth harbour, and initially had to make the laborious climb to Lynton, some 500 feet higher up on the cliff on foot. Using a simple principle based around the weight water to haul passenger carrying cars safely up the terrifically steep incline between the towns, fully functional piece of Victorian engineering still facilitates visitors young and old, and no visit to Lynton and Lynmouth would be complete without riding the on the cliff railway.
As one would expect from such a picture-postcard location as Lynton and Lynmouth, there remains to this day, an abundance of tearooms, shops and restaurants, plus a splendid museum and of course, a myriad of different outdoor activities for young and old alike. Not forgetting to leave time to visit the intriguing Valley of the Rocks, with it's own resident herd of goats, of course. And what better way to spend an evening than listening to tales of shadowy smugglers and the infamous Doone Family, immortalised in R D Blackmore's famous book Lorna Doone, over glass of your favourite tipple in one of the towns' olde worlde inns, some of whom claim to have been offering hospitality to weary travellers for over three hundred years ( no questions asked as to how their plentiful supplies of fine Navy Rum were aquired! ).
When looking for a self catering holiday base that's got all the usual hospitality,
plus 'a little bit extra', one would be would be hard pushed to find a more
fascinating set of twins in such breathtaking scenery as the welcoming towns
of Lynton and Lynmouth.
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