Crow's Nest guide to What's On in Dartmouth - 23rd - 29th August 2013

The Crow's Nest mini guides - 3) Crabbing in Dartmouth.

 Dartmouth crab fishing tips for holidaymakers and visitors.

There is a past time in Dartmouth that takes place each year from April to October depending on the weather. It is essentially a fine weather sport. It is suitable for all ages although children tend to be more enthusiastic and enthralled. It is harmless and the equipment initially costs around a fiver. The equipment consists of a bucket, preferably clear, a fishing line with a mesh bag on the end and bacon. That's it. It involves skill, patience, luck and fierce inter-family competitiveness.  The past time is crab fishing,known as 'crabbing' locally. The art of catching crabs off the embankment by line.

Years ago this was carried out using normal fishing lines with hooks on the end. The bait, usually cheap supermarket bacon was then placed on the hooks and the line dangled into the water. The problem here was twofold. The hooks hurt the small crabs and the hooks sometimes hurt the small children's fingers. The solution was easy. The hooks were substituted for nylon mesh bags when it was realised that with fresh bacon inside, the small crabs would cling on tight until they had eaten their fill. No need for nasty hooks.

Almost overnight, the past time became enormously more popular and safer to one and all!

Great tips on crabbing.

If you get hooked (sorry!) on crabbing you can arrive in Dartmouth, buy your gear and be crabbing within 5 minutes. Some guests of ours recently reported catching 94 crabs in about 1 hour from the North Embankment. They must have used a very big bucket and excellent quality bacon.

The best places to go crabbing in Dartmouth? That's easy, the North and South embankments but watch out for boats especially ferries coming in to moor up!

The thing is, children simply love it! They cannot wait to get out and start catching the lovely creatures. it must be a combination of sport and the skill of pulling your line very gently out of the water so the crabs don't jump off before you pop them into the bucket of water. It is often said that Dartmouth crabs must be the healthiest crabs around. They spend most of the summer eating first class bacon and then go for a little ride up in the air to spend some time in a small bucket before being returned to the water to look for more bacon.

Crabbing in Dartmouth, the crabs love it, families love it and so do the supermarkets.

Buckets and lines sold by: Pillars newsagents Lower Street and many other outlets around town.

Bacon sold by The Co-Op Supermarket, Fairfax Place

Final Safety Tips: Don't let anyone fall in the water! and don't eat any that you catch, please put them back for the next crabbers.

NB  If by now you have a longing for fresh crab, Dartmouth is the right place to be. Our local restaurants, pubs, cafes and shops sell the freshest and finest crab in the world try it next time you visit.

Crow's Nest guide to What's On in Dartmouth - 9th - 15th August 2013

Crows Nest mini guides - 2) Cafe Alf Resco, Lower Street, Dartmouth.

Cafe Alf Resco  

Our short guide to Cafe Alf Fresco.

See why we love it and why you have to visit when you come to Dartmouth:

Local (very) breakfast & lunch halt

Bohemian

Atmospheric

Stylish

Coffee

Full EnglishBreakfast ++

Toast

Porridge

Mushrooms on Toast

Smoked salmon and scrambled eggs

Music

Laughter

Chatter

Friends

Dogs

Family

Children
Noisey

Charity supporters

Dartmouth supporters

Open every day

All year round

Social media fans

Great orange juice

Great teas

Great food

Meeting place

Fell in love with Alf's many years ago. One of the Dartmouth attractions, institutions. Best meeting place for breakfast? Love taking friends and family there for breakfast. Everyone loves Alf's. Have you been?

CLICK here to PLAY

Crow's Nest guide to What's On in Dartmouth - 26th July - 1st August 2013

 

Crows Nest mini guides - 1) The Royal Avenue Gardens, Dartmouth

The first in a series of short articles describing some of the things we love about Dartmouth

1) The Royal Avenue Gardens, Dartmouth

We wanted to write about our favourite relaxing, peaceful green space in Dartmouth, the impressive Royal Avenue Gardens. Right in the centre of Dartmouth there is this wonderful space full of amazing flowers, grasses, plants and trees that so many visitors just walk right by.  What makes it so lovely is that it gets used by both visitors and residents of Dartmouth who know about its treasures.

So even though the gardeners constantly produce really spectacular flower beds and floral displays there are no 'Keep off the Grass' signs anywhere. People picnic, laze around, sun-bathe, read books or just chat and relax on the grass. Children dance and play. Well behaved dogs run around having fun. All on this small oasis of lush green garden right next to the Bandstand and overlooking the River Dart! People use it and enjoy it and love it.

The council gardeners are wonderful and because so many people love to use this space they work really hard to keep it in great condition. For instance at Dart Music Festival time each May, it is used particularly hard. Some flower beds get a bit trampled and stuff gets broken off. Within a few days it is all perfect again and always recovers!

There are benches dotted around the edge of the grass and a great new section was added to the gardens last year called the 'Newcomen Plaza'.  This is a very fancy phrase for an additional bit of space in front of the Thomas Newcomen Engine display room. There are several raised beds with herbs and plants in and some really nice paved areas with benches. It looks brilliant and is a lovely place to sit on a bench and 'stop to smell the roses'. 

That's because it is also adjacent to the Rose Garden. If you love roses, you will really like this. A circular area surrounded by ornate metal railings and arches that really shows off the collection of rose bushes. The scent is captivating and at this time of year the roses are fully out and so colourful, you would love it.

The Royal Avenue Gardens may not have the excitement of Dartmouth Castle or the attraction of Agatha Christie's house but nevertheless they are stunning, peaceful and relaxing. In our opinion you should make sure you walk around them the next time you visit or just plop down on a bench and read a book.

Oh, and did I forget to mention the small but beautifully formed pond with goldfish, surrounded by lilies and ferns and gunnera (like giant rhubarb leaves)?  This is tucked away right at the back of the gardens on your way through to the car park.

Crows Nest guide to Entertaining Kids on their Holidays

Always thinking about what you can do to entertain the kids? Well here is a ton of stuff they may enjoy?

Let us know if you try any of these things out.

Have fun.