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population and conflict. However, it seems likely that not all enclosures were permanently occupied. Archaeological evidence from other sites suggests that some sites may have been used for gatherings for trade and exchange, for religious activities, and for storage. Bolt Tail may have been one of these. Certainly it would have been a pretty blustery spot to live all the time. The main kind of structure built by Iron Age peoples for homes, shelter and storage was the roundhouse. This construction had low walls and a tall conical thatched roof. Fires could be lit inside, with the smoke escaping through the thatch. There may well have been a small clutch of roundhouses within the enclosures of both Bolt Tail and Burleigh Dolts. There has never been an archae-


Kestrel


Perigrine falcon


Skylark


ological dig at either Bolt Tail or Burleigh Dolts, and it is fairly likely to stay that way – so we are left with many tantalising clues and mysteries. Hope Cove was in past times a centre of smuggling. It was a long haul to the village for the Revenue men based at Plymouth and Salcombe – especially as the road to Hope was in notoriously bad condition back in the 18th and 19th centuries. This usually gave the ‘free traders’ plenty of time to get their booty ashore and well hidden before the lawmen arrived. All Saints Church in Malborough is known in some


quarters as the ‘cathedral of the South Hams’. Its spire can be seen from many miles away. The site of the church was used in 1588 for a fire beacon to send warning of the Spanish Armada’s approach.


Wildlife The sites at Burleigh Dolts and Bolt Tail are both home to the skylark. The size of a small thrush, the skylark has a raised crest on its head. However, it is more likely to be seen than heard. Its beautiful rich liquid song is a classic sound of the countryside in spring and summer. The skylark sings in a long ‘songflight’, and


All Saints Church in Malborough - © South Devon AONB Unit copyright


Buzzard


by following the sound you can sometimes make out the source – usually a small dot hovering high overhead. This is an ideal walk for seeing birds of prey. You will


commonly see a kestrel hovering on reddish- brown wings above the grassy cliffs. Even in howling winds, an airborne kestrel can remain absolutely stationary while it scans the ground below for voles and mice. A sleek dark grey shape slicing through the sky along the cliffs may well be a Peregrine falcon. This most aerodynamic of birds is a formidable hunter, preying on other birds. Britain’s answer to the condor is the buzzard. On the inland stretches of this walk you will often see this large brown bird on the wing, sailing majestically on the thermals. Along the coast path grow clusters of yarrow,


with feathery leaves on a dark green- blue stem, and flat umbrellas of white florets. There are drifts of pink thrift, the spinach-like leaves of sea beet, and the low, bright red and yellow flowers of bird’s foot trefoil. Toadflax also grows here, its yellow lipped flowers massed on straight stem- spikes. Tamarisk has been planted in front of the tiny St Clements Church at Hope. This shrubby tree has small feathery leaves, reddish- orange twigs, and soft pink flowers in the summer. It was introduced to Britain from the Mediterranean around the 16th century, and now of- ten grows wild along the coast. It is sometimes plant- ed by conservationists to stabilise shingle beaches.


Kestrel © geograph-3459419-by-Walter-Baxter Skylark © geograph-4970844-by-Russel-Wills.


• Perigrine falcon © geograph-872939-by-sylvia-duckworth. • Buzzard © geograph-1387322-by-Walter-Baxter.


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