An Illustrated Trail · Devon · MMXXVI
From the Blackdown Hills, where the river rises among the beechwoods, down through orchard and meadow to the pebble shore at Budleigh Salterton — a guide to the small makers, farms and inns that lie within two miles of the water.
About the River
The Otter rises in the Blackdown Hills just inside Somerset, near Otterford, then flows south through East Devon, passing Upottery, Monkton, Honiton, Alfington, Ottery St Mary, Tipton St John, Newton Poppleford and Otterton before reaching the sea at Budleigh Salterton — part of the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site.
For much of its length the river runs through two National Landscapes (formerly AONBs) — the Blackdown Hills to the north of Honiton, and East Devon to the south of Ottery St Mary. At one time as many as fifty watermills were powered by its waters; Otterton Mill, recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086, still grinds flour today.
The Otter is also the only river in England with a wild breeding population of Eurasian beavers — first noticed in 2013 and, since 2020, permitted to remain indefinitely in the first legally sanctioned reintroduction of an extinct native animal in England.
◆ Adapted from Wikipedia · River Otter, Devon ◆
From the Journal
Autumn · 5 November 2026
A centuries-old tradition where flaming barrels of tar are run through the streets of Ottery St Mary every 5th of November.
Read on →
From those who've walked it
A perfect Sunday — coffee at Sup Dawg, a wander to the Tumbling Weir, then cider tasting at Bowhayes. The map made it impossible to get lost.
— Helen & Marcus · Exeter
Cycled the lower valley with the kids using the GPX file. The Cannon Inn fed us, Pynes Farm Shop kitted out the picnic. Couldn't fault it.
— The Whitlock family · Honiton
I came for the ice cream and stayed for the forge. Quiet lanes, generous people, a part of Devon I didn't know existed.
— Joanna R. · Bristol
Seasonal Dispatches
Tar barrels in November, blossom in May, the cider press in October, beaver sightings whenever they please. One short note per season — no more.
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