This part of North Devon is one of the leading outdoor pursuits areas in the South of England. With nearly forty activities ranging from the individual-based like paragliding to team-based like paint-balling, the choice is vast, catering for everyone from the mellow walker to the full-on adrenalin freak. While some people stay at Ocean Backpackers just simply because of its excellent and cheap accommodation, others come with an agenda filled with activities they wish to try out. With as many operators as there are activities, organising a weekend from out of the area can be a time-consuming and tricky task.  As with any industry the quality of  service varies from one operator to another. We have a wide experience of which  operators our guests consistently complement on providing an excellent service at a cost effective price. We also know of operators our guests have not been so satisfied with.

 

Please Note. We do not operate these Activities Ourselves

 

SURFING The North Devon surf streches from Saunton in the west, through the very picturesque Croyde and past Woolacombe to the shores of Lynmouth, situated between Exmoor and the sea.
     Saunton beach has the reputation of Britian's premier longboarding beach and Croyde has been considered as Englands best beach at low tide (however its solid A-frames are not for the inexperienced) Putsborough offers shelter from south westerly winds and Woolacombe is again popular for longboarders
     North Devon gets similar swells to Cornwall, a little less if the swell direction is from the North West. Winds for the main beaches are ideal from the South East and the surf is at its most consistent in winter but works whenever there is a low in the swell window. When the waves are good North Devon can suffer crowds but big swells can keep crowd levels down a bit.
     If you have never tried surfing before but want to brush up on your technique why not take a lesson with a professional BSA qualified instructor. All schools provide board and wet suit hire as well as tuition. (See our links page) 

 

POWERBOAT RIDING/DRIVING Ever fancied driving a high power speed boat. Here is your chance or sit back and let an expert handle the controls as you fly through the water like a rocket.  ABSEILING & CLIMBING climb and descend some of North Devon's wild and rocky cliffs overlooking the sea from the top of the cliff where you can also bump into the medieval goats that still roam the hills and valleys. HORSE RIDING The rides around Ilfracombe are some of the best in the country. Take a horse onto the beach or gallop across the moors on Exmoor National Park. Beginners are also welcomed to come here for lessons.
MICROLIGHTING The ultimate thrill-fly over woods, rolling hills beaches and the unique rough and craggy north Devon coastline. Be the passenger with an experienced pilot in one of these tiny, open aircraft, recapturing the spirit of early aviation. Soar the skies with the birds at between 2,000- 8,000 feet. 
BOOGIE BOARDING If you never surfed before, have fun boogieing on the surf on small and light weight body boards FALCONRY Learn how to handle a falcon. Have the falcon take off, fly and land on your protected forearm. GO-KARTING the 400 metre pro-circuit is fully computerised with lap timing and race control system, race suits and crash helmets are available.
SCUBA DIVING see the amazing treasures of the underwater world! with our neighbours the local Scuba Dive Club. They organise dive trips to the dozens of shipwrecks and to Lundy Island marine nature reserve. You can blow some bubbles at some of the U.K’s finest dive sites, where you will discover underwater caves and wrecks, a part of England’s history only seen by a few privileged eyes. You can swim with playful seals or the giant but shy basking sharks in Lundy’s crystal clear waters. (telephone to check water visibility). Lundy also offers excellent snorkelling and all equipment for snorkelling, including wet-suit, can be rented locally.

Hit the Beach
Ilfracombe has numerous beaches. Within 150 metres of the hostel we have three. Two are stony and one is sandy. The sanding one is formed in the harbour at low tide. There is also some great snorkling to be done here. To the east is Hele bay which is sand and pebbles and sits under dramatic cliffs. A little further is Watermouth bay and then Wild Pear beach which is one of the areas nudist beaches. Access to this beach entails some rock climbing. Just down from Ilfracombe to the west is the popular surf spot of Woolacombe. It has surf boards for hire and has a superb sandy beach surrounded by dunes and overlooking Lundy Island. It has been voted one of Europes top twenty top beaches. It is very popular in the summer. Along from Woolacombe down a few country  lanes and the quaint village of Georgham is Putsborough beach, which is a couple of miles long and has had little  development on it. Baricane beach the next one along this coastline is a tiny sandy beach with exotic shells washed up on it from the Carribbean, via the gulf stream. Croyde bay provides some of the best surf in the West Country.  The village is filled with pretty thatched cottages. Saunton, the next beach down is also one of the best in the country. There is always drift-wood and other little treasures to be found beach-combing  here. It is 4 miles long and backs onto a vast area of sand dunes and the river Taw estuary which forms a unique it is an area of special ecological importance. During the summer the entrace area to Saunton is always busy but a mile or two further down is always semi-deserted. The beaches are one of the principle attractions in North Devon but even during the summer it is still possible to find a beach to yourself if you know where to look, ask us and we may reveal our secret.
EXMOOR COAST BOAT TRIP the coast near Ilfracombe is home to seals, porpoises, basking sharks, dolphins, whale, peregrine raven, razor bill, puffins and gannets (Europe’s largest sea bird). See waterfalls, cliffs and as you explore the rugged North Devon coast line hear tales of the coastlines incredible history and see big hangman where many a pirate finished their career by being hung from the cliffs.
ADVENTURE SWIMMING Put on safety equipment and then scramble along the coast jumping off high rocks into the sea and coastal traversing (walking a direct route along the beautiful coastline, this activity combines climbing, abseiling, and swimming. POTTERY MAKING have a taste at what is like to throw a clay pot and have a go at making it pretty, imagination necessary!!!
QUAD BIKING includes full training in an enclosed area and an excursion over majestic hilly farmland with great views of the coastline and sea. There are three levels of course going from the basic to the extreme driving up near cliffs and splashing through rivers. As the operators state if it is raining that’s fine, the wetter, the better!
PAINT-BALLING for all those would-be Rambos. Run around woods with a mask, ballshooter and a mission. Locally, we have two different centres which offer different types of terrain
HIGH ROPES ASSAULT COURSE another one for the brave! The course is 12 metre high and 150 metres long with all sorts of obstacles such as a flying trapeze, high beams, tight rope walking, climbing onto a stack of twenty or so beer crates while being 20 ft. high. Of course, you have a safety harness and a helmet but it still takes a blast of courage to do the challenge. 
CYCLING take your bike down the old railway line from Ilfracombe to Barnstaple. This is a stunning and unique ride through the old tunnels. For mountain biking we have a small but dramatic downhill course in Ilfracombe. (Bikes are available for hire for these tracks but helmets must be worn.) Woolacombe offers a mountain bike tour where all equipment is supplied. Ilfracombe has a BMX track. 
DEEP SEA FISHING try out your skill and luck at catching a large fish for dinner, how about a mackerel or even a shark, which can be cooked for you by the owners of Altantis restaurant. ARCHERY Tap into your inner Robin Hood and learn how to use a bow and arrow. Compete with your mates doing target practice. KAYAKING paddle around Ilfracombe’s scenic harbour and learn to Eskimo roll. Sea excursions are also available to those which have mastered the basic skills. All equipment is available from the activity provider. RIDE THE TUBES cascades, tropical adventure pool offers a 70 metre flume. The centre also has a rapids ride, underwater geysers, hydro jets and water spouts. Afterwards relax with a Jacuzzi. Available in the evenings and at night.
WALKING take a hike along the coast and across the Exmoor National Park on your own or join a park warden for an interesting talk about the area’s wildlife and geography.
Hiking 
SW. coastal path from Ilfracombe to Lynton. ( approx. 5hrs walking)
Editors note - having traveled with my partner extensively around the World we both agree that this walk is very special and in its own way is as good as any walks we have done on other continents. 
With Ilfracombe being built on the cusp of Exmoor National Park, this is the walkers’ paradise. Many outstanding walking trails set out of Ilfracombe. If you head east you make a steep ascent up to Hillsborough, which offers a panoramic view over Ilfracombe, the sea, and on a clear day Wales and Lundy Island, a mile or so along you reach Rillage Point, where fluffy seals can often be spotted. Past Hele bay and its beach and then onto Watermouth castle, Combe Martin is the next place of interest (the town with the longest high street in the country and a famous ‘Pack of Cards' pub built by  		the money won in a game of cards a few centuries ago), the walk takes you over the hills nearby Wild Pear beach (nudist), a little further along brings you to Little Hangman and Big Hangman hills, where they used to publicly hang pirates. The walk then goes on to Holdestone Down, a heather-clad hill, cloaked in mystery. It is said to be a top site for spotting of UFO’s. From here you gain superb views of the countryside, across the Bristol channel and into Wales. Continuing on through Hunters Inn, which is a good place for spotting red deer and grabbing a pint, and then along the small toll road and through a wood which hugs the coastline, 700 feet above sea level thick green moss carpets the woods and a small waterfall flows right over the road. The road leads to Lee Abbey and onto the magnificent Valley of Rocks for a grand finale. This narrow toll road is said to be one of the most beautiful roads in the south of England. It is only wide enough though for cars and navigating it in fog or at night can be very tricky and is not advised. By now you have reached………..
PARAGLIDING This available at Woolacombe Bay by arrangement but is for the experienced only. SNOWCAT AMPHIBIOUS CAR this is “a go anywhere, stop for nothing “ monster mobile. Down 40 degree hills, over an island and through mountains of mud. This is a real white knuckle ride. BIRDING Lundy island and Saunton Burrows are legendary places to spot rare 
migrating birds and do some detective work on those rare birds! Just watch many species of birds and have fun. 		GRASS KARTING Race your mates around the rough and bumpy track. Great for thrills & spills and stunning views of the sea. 
White Water Challenge Only for the brave! Ride the waves over some of the strongest tides in Britain Morte Point, where the Bristol Channel meets the Atlantic Ocean. Enter Hells Mouth, shoot the stone and climb Baggy Leap. Ocean Wildlife Tour The coast near Ilfracombe is home to Seals, Porpoises, Basking Sharks, Dolphins, Whales, Peregrine, Raven, Razor Bill, Puffins, and Gannets (Europes largest sea bird). Take a two hour boat trip with a wildlife expert and have you chance to spot any of the above.

What people say;

  • "Some of the best scenery in the UK and truly beautiful natural oak forests" Charlie Shaw, Toronto, Canada.

  • “Extreme exhilaration, nothing compares to being up in a microlight, outstanding” Max Fariway Andover, Hants.

  • "Beer at half the price of London, better scenery and excellent surf for England!" Jenny Barlow, Wilderness, South Africa.

  • "Where else can you do so much, for so little money in just three days and two nights. Ocean Backpackers is clean, comfortable and the whole concept very well thought out". Mich Van Gills Amsterdam, Holland.

  • "Lundy Island was like stepping back to the stone age, well almost, had a great time swimming with the seals and seeing those cute but ridiculous birds, Puffins" M Quinn Tooting, London

  • "Great house and hosts. Very nice activities, I will tell my friends" Ulla. Wilhelm, Munich, Germany.

  • "Ocean Backpackers is one of a kind we had a superb laugh the grass karts were loud, and muddy, the climbing wild and a bit scary, the power boating the ultimate thrill, I spent less than £100 and also had one of the best meals of my life…...I’m back for another 48hr holiday."

  • “I love you” Federica, Milan.

  • "First time I came with three mates, the second time with 15, both times fantastic." Mike Williams-Bristol

  • "Wicked, wicked, wicked,- but I’m whacked- coming back soon I hope." S. Verinimanu– Porto Alegre, Brazil

  • "Active but chilled, supreme weekend, lots of wine, dancing, many great looking women" M. Nado– Sydney, Australia

To Book your Accommodation Email: - info@oceanbackpackers.co.uk or Telephone 01271 867835