So how to recommend a good pub? The following suggestions are for good pubs with an added extra – a nice walk (to work off the dumplings and clotted cream); an interesting castle or a picturesque village.

The Beer Engine, Newton St Cyres

The Beer Engine is a great pub with good food, and, what makes it unusual, home brewed beer. Beer comes in 3 strengths Rail Ale, Piston and Sleeper. All are first rate and there is even a take-home service. There is a beer garden, which is a real sun trap on spring mornings. The pub takes its name from its proximity to the Exeter-Barnstaple railway line. A rustic railway running a skeleton service along this single track line (with passing places in the stations). For those commuters amongst you this is about as far removed from Paddington to Orpington as you are likely to get. This is a request service – you stand at the station, like at a bus stop and shove your arm out when you see the train coming (and, yes, they do stop). Well worth leaving your car behind and making the day trip from Exeter Central (also stopping at Exeter St David’s)

The Rock, Haytor Vale.

The Rock is a traditional Dartmoor pub: low ceilings, beams, inglenook. Situated in the highly picturesque village of Haytor Vale, this pub expects you to turn up hungry. It does great food and huge portions. Either eat inside or in peaceful beer garden on the opposite side of the sleepy lane. Nearby are the spectacular rocks of Haytor, one of the most dramatic of all Dartmoor’s granite tors and an easy walk from the road. A quick nip up to the rocks and back to the pub will take you about an hour. Alternatively for a slightly longer walk, carry on in a loop beyond the tor to see the old granite workings. It was from here that the granite was quarried to make London Bridge and you can see the mine and the remains of the partly rock-cut tramway which carried the massive granite blocks to the road.

The Drewe Arms, Broadhembury

An early Tudor residence, with a delightful garden for fine days, and crackling fires for cold days, this is a pub that needs a bit of planning ahead – if you want to eat that is. Try to book a table for Sunday lunch at short notice and they’ll just laugh at you! Mid week is usually fine, though and the reason it’s always packed is that the food is really really special. Not only that, it is one of the most picturesque villages in Devon, if not in England. Broadhembury is an advertisement for the merits of dictatorship. The whole village is owned and overseen by the Drewe family (see the other Drewe pub below) who have ensured that there has been no inappropriate development to mar the historic beauty of the place. Picture postcard landscapes don’t come better than this.

The Drewe Arms, Drewsteignton

A traditional Devon pub in picturesque village, you enter a time warp with a miniscule drinking area, serving local cider and ales from a tap room, rather than a bar, through traditional serving hatch. Good food and a recently opened dining room, named "Mabel's Kitchen" after the previous landlady who retired at the age of 99. There’s also a darts board but playing can’t be a bit tricky if the bar has more than 3 people in it – make sure you don’t put someone’s eye out. From the Drewe Arms, you can also visit Castle Drogo, the Drewe family seat, (now a National Trust property), and see what the family wealth was spent on. On a fine day picturesque walks along the Teign Valley add to the charm of this delightful village.

 The Pig’s Nose, East Prawle

A coastal pub just begging to be the film set for Treasure Island. With CAMRA awards and serving real ales from the barrel, the Pig’s Nose also has a wide and varied menu and hosts live music events. Spectacular coastal walks start from the village along the rugged coastal path to Prawle Point, the most southerly point of Devon, with great views across the Channel. Prawle Point is also a bird watcher’s paradise. Migrant birds arrive here first in the spring and gather here for their long flights in the autumn. A walk from the pub along the coast path and back will take most of the day, and amply justify the reward of a pint.

The Highwayman, Sourton

This is perhaps the most remarkable pub in Devon. The life’s work of a mad eccentric the whole building has been transformed into a treasure trove of curios and memorabilia. Enter through the main porch, fitted with leather seats to resemble the inside of a horse drawn carriage. Inside you will find a maze of interconnecting bars and snugs. Make sure you don’t miss the dragon bar, made from one huge piece of timber pulled from a Dartmoor bog and resembling a dancing Chinese dragon. Real ale, local cider with attitude and a selection of simple but good food. To make a day of it climb to the top of Sourton rocks – no simple stroll this. Make sure you wear stout footwear.

The George and Dragon, Ilfracombe

Ilfracombe is a pleasant place to while away a pleasant day, although its not exactly en route to anywhere, (excepting that it is the embarkation point for trips to Lundy). A nice quiet pub situated on Fore Street in the centre of town is the George and Dragon, with a "no mobiles" policy. The oldest pub in Ilfracombe, built in around 1360, it takes you back to the great days of sail when the town was an important maritime port rather than North Devon’s main seaside resort. There are plenty of good beaches and good walks starting here, but they can both be packed in Summer, so Spring and Autumn may be better times to visit. Alternatively Fore Street itself is the main shopping street, so for retail therapy plus a good pub this could be just the ticket.