Otter Valley Way - Ottery St Mary to Budleigh Salterton Walk

This walk follows the Otter Valley Way from Ottery St Mary to the coast at Budleigh Salterton.
The waymarked trail runs along the River Otter, passing Tipton St John, Newton Poppleford, Colaton Raleigh and Otterton before coming to the Otter Estuary Nature Reserve where the river meets the sea.
Here you turn west to finish at the popular coastal town of Budleigh Salterton where there are plenty of options for rest and refreshment.
The trail offers a gentle journey through East Devon's history and geology, tracing the river from the historic wool town of Ottery St Mary down to the English Channel. Starting near the striking St Mary’s Church, the route heads south toward Tipton St John, where the path occasionally follows the trackbed of the dismantled railway line.... This village was once a busy junction for the Sidmouth and Budleigh Salterton lines, a heritage remembered today by the Golden Lion pub, which sits on rising ground overlooking the river and makes for a convenient early refreshment stop.
Continuing downstream, you reach Newton Poppleford, a settlement with deep roots as a Roman river crossing and a planned 13th-century "new town" at the pebble ford. The village is also celebrated as the original home of the King Alfred daffodil, a legacy of the market gardens that once thrived here. Further along the valley lies the peaceful village of Colaton Raleigh. Here, the route passes near Place Court, a historic house with a chapel where local legend claims Sir Walter Raleigh was baptised. The village's cob and thatch cottages provide a classic Devon backdrop as you move toward the coast.
The trail then leads to Otterton, home to the historic Otterton Mill. This working watermill has ground grain since Norman times and remains a focal point for visitors, offering a bakery and café that showcase the site’s long milling tradition. As the river widens into the Otter Estuary, the landscape shifts to salt marshes and mudflats, an area recently transformed by the Lower Otter Restoration Project to return the land to a more natural tidal state.
Finally, the walk concludes at Budleigh Salterton, where the river meets the sea against a backdrop of dramatic red cliffs. These cliffs are famous for the Budleigh Salterton Pebble Beds, a geological feature formed over 240 million years ago in a Triassic desert river system. While exploring the estuary, keep an eye out for the flash of a kingfisher or signs of the resident beaver population, though the area is just as notable for its history of salt panning and the remains of old lime kilns that hint at its industrial past.

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Honiton River Otter and the Otter Estuary Sidmouth to Budleigh Salterton Walk

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Ottery St Mary : Mill Leat

The River Otter, Tipton St John

Otter Estuary. The path eventually leads you to the Otter Estuary Nature Reserve, a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) where the river meets the sea. This fertile area of salt marsh and reed beds is a premier destination for birdwatching, having recorded over 120 different species. In the winter, the intertidal mudflats attract large numbers of wading birds such as Curlews, Black-tailed Godwits, and Brent Geese. During the summer months, the scrub and reeds are alive with songbirds like the noisy Cetti’s Warbler, while Little Egrets and Grey Herons are frequently seen hunting in the shallows. Recent landscape improvements via the Lower Otter Restoration Project have significantly increased the available habitat, making it one of the best sites on the south coast to observe rare visitors like Avocets and Glossy Ibis.

The beach, Budleigh Salterton

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Otter Valley Ottery St Mary to Budleigh Salterton Walk.gpx