Short answer: Braunton Burrows is a UNESCO biosphere reserve and the largest dune system in England, with concrete D-Day training relics still standing in it. It floods in winter, there are no toilets, and the soft sand is tiring — go prepared rather than casually.
The largest sand dune system in England and a UNESCO biosphere reserve. It is not a beach with some dunes behind it; it is a landscape in its own right, big enough to lose your sense of direction in, with marram grass, rare plants and a shifting topography.
American troops trained here for the Normandy landings, and concrete structures built to practise assaulting the Atlantic Wall are still standing in the dunes. Finding them is part of the appeal — they appear without warning in a landscape that otherwise gives no clue they are there.
This is the practical warning. The low ground between dunes holds water through the wetter months, and routes that are straightforward in July are wet or impassable in January. Check conditions rather than assuming, and expect wet feet.
Dune systems look the same in every direction and the marram grass is above head height in places. Keep track of where you came in, or walk a route that keeps the sea on one consistent side. People do get turned around here and it is a large area.
Walkers, naturalists and anyone interested in the war history. It does not suit buggies or wheelchairs — soft sand defeats wheels entirely — and with small children the sensible version is a short wander in from the edge rather than a crossing.
Saunton Sands is firm, flat and three miles long, with dogs allowed all year, and it is ten minutes away. The Tarka Trail through Braunton is surfaced and level. Both give you the coast without the dunes.
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