Photography by Mark Carnaby

Getting to Buckfastleigh from Ashbourne Woods by bicycle is no mean feat! a one mile long slow winding narrow hill can be challegening! but I got there in the end...
The picturesque little town of Buckfastleigh
An old vintage Austin car spooted in the car park of Buckfastleigh town
The beautiful Buckfast Abbey seen amongst the rolling hills & blue skies of Buckfastleigh
About the Buckfast Monastery
Pectoral Cross replica - original made in 1539
About the Reliquary shrine door
The original Reliquary shrine door c1200-1250 - a very old artifact indeed...
About the Bust of Abbot Anscar Vonier
The Bust of Abbot Anscar Vonier c.1937
Timeline of the reconstruction of Buckfast Abbey, finished in 1937 by the French Benedictine monks
Illuminated display of Buckfast Abbey
The monks rule book - swipe with hand gestures to read each page
This whole exhibition before you enter the Abbey was very fascinating - the technology used to show about being a monk was outstanding
The life of a Benedictine monk
A constantly moving wall of images gives you an idea of what a day in the life of a monk is like
Up at 5:25 am for prayers and bed around 20:15 pm - could you do it?
There she is in all her glory - Buckfast Abbey!
Sideview of the Abbey
Look at those ceilings and floors inside the Abbey - perfect.
Mural way up above the Altar in Buckfast Abbey - there's also a balcony up there but only for the privileged few I imagine...
The golden Altar at Buckfast Abbey
About the memorial to Abbot Anscar Vonier - an insight into the carvings in the following photo
The memorial to Abbot Anscar Vonier seated into one of the Altar pillars
The Baptistry
Looking towards the Altar inside the immaculate interior of Buckfast Abbey
Really fab mural on the wall inside the Abbey cafe showing the reconstruction - luckily it was closing time so nobody was occupying the seats!
To my utter surprise they were filming BBC Antiques Roadshow on the day of my visit! I didn't even twig onto this until I was leaving (thought it was some kind of guns & arms documentary) and went back in to get some shots!
Lights...Camera...
John Benjamin from the BBC Antiques Roadshow
The hilarious Andy McConnell from the BBC Antiques Roadshow - my folks favourite!

South Devon 2018 Cycle Touring Trip: Part 4 of 12

South Devon Cycle Touring Trip: Buckfast Abbey & BBC Antiques Roadshow 2018

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The following photos chronicle my nine day South Devon cycle touring trip in September 2018 which was a double-first for me as I’ve never taken my bicycle on a long trip with me before and I had also not been camping for many, many years, needless to say there was a lot of planning involved! From getting a proper lightweight suitable tent and sleeping bag to fixing up my old (but trusty) hybrid mountain bike to cope with carrying the weight of my camping gear whilst on the road and traversing the trains.

The journey started by taking a train from Surbiton to Totnes via Woking, which took about roughly 6 hours (including an hour’s delay at Exeter St. Davids), then it took a good couple of hours to ride from Totnes to Ashbourne Woods in the rain, the misty stuff which actually helped because of the crazy hills I was sweating like a pig! And once I arrived it was dark, raining and I had to set up my tent…

…and so the adventure begins…

In this set of photos I cycle from my campsite in Ashbourne Woods to Buckfastleigh and visit the beautiful Buckfast Abbey