A winding road through Bucks Woods leads down to the picturesque traditional fishing village of Bucks Mills (once owned by the Walland-Carey Estate which owned much of the land between Clovelly and Portledge). As you amble downwards towards the sea, you’ll pass Bucks Cabin, an artists’ studio frozen in time. At the coast you’ll find an uncrowded pebble beach, the remains of two clusters of limekilns, and fragments of an inclined plane which helped move material up the steep coastal slope from the quayside.

History

As you pass down though the woodland into the village you’ll pass St Anne’s Church, endowed to the village by Mrs. Elwes, the Lord of the Manor of Walland Cary. There are several footpaths through this woodland for you to explore – simply turn on the ‘Public Rights of Way’ and road layers on our map page and zoom in, or see the attached resources to the right of the page.

This picturesque settlement lies on the border between Parkham and Woolfardisworthy, divided by the stream which would have powered the inclined plane, with further mill leats running through the wood. A mill has been present since at least 1611 with the last miller recorded as living at Bucks Mills during the census of 1851.

Arts and Culture

Artists Judith Ackland and Mary Stella Edwards used the Cabin at Bucks Mills as their studio from the 1920s. They lived and worked at the cabin during summers until Judith’s death in 1971. Since then, the cabin was left exactly as it was – locked and waiting for them to return. The property was recently acquired by the National Trust and true to the spirit of its former inhabitants, this time capsule has seen a new-tradition established through its use by contemporary artists for residencies in the summers of 2010 and 2011.

Amenities

There is a carpark mid-valley into the village and bus stops at Bucks Cross.

Activities

Why not explore the coast path and the charming public footpaths in the area’s woodland? Stroll through the old cottages nestled in the valley, relax by the seaside, or try your hand at seafishing from Bucks Mills.