Where the Otter meets the sea near Budleigh Salterton, the cliffs turn red. This is the start of the Jurassic Coast, the stretch of Dorset and East Devon coast that UNESCO listed in 2001 because the cliffs tell a continuous story of 185 million years. At the eastern end, at Orcombe Point in Exmouth, a stone sculpture called the Geoneedle marks the beginning, and from there the rocks run from the red sandstones of the Triassic towards the white chalk of the east. The section between Orcombe Rocks and Chit Rocks is the oldest, a wall of red cliff, sandy beach and sea stacks that look as if they were painted.
The geology is the attraction. The red colour comes from iron oxide in desert sands laid down 250 million years ago, when this part of Britain lay near the equator. At Budleigh Salterton the beach is made of rounded pebbles, which are famous among geologists because they were carried here by an ancient river from what is now Brittany. Ladram Bay, a short way east, has sea stacks cut from the same rock, and the cliffs are crumbling constantly, so keep away from the edge.
Sidmouth, four kilometres away, is a Regency seaside town of white-fronted houses and a pebble beach under the cliffs, with a quiet charm and a festival of folk music in August. Budleigh Salterton is a smaller, quiet resort with a long beach and a tea room. The Otter estuary behind it is a nature reserve, with waders and egrets.
For a motorcyclist, east Devon is a patchwork of narrow lanes, high hedges and steep little hills. The roads are twisty and often single-track, with passing places, and it is easy to meet a tractor or a large car coming the other way. Traffic is heavy in July and August, so early morning is best. Sidmouth and Budleigh Salterton have fuel and shops, and Newton Poppleford is a small village with a pub. Spring and autumn are the best seasons, with clear light on the red cliffs.