On a good day it is possible to see South Wales from Ilfracombe......
The station site, situated incoveniently above the town is now a factory. It is possible to walk the trackbed up past the Slade Reservoirs most of the way to Morthoe station. The 1:36 is a noticeable climb, but coming back is better!
BR really was at its worst when they ran the line down after 1963; decay and neglect permeated the whole line. The high cost of manning all the gated level crossings was not addressed, adding to the agony of the slow death. I suppose we should be grateful the line to Barnstaple survived; probably by the skin of its teeth.
The half hourly Ilfracombe to Westward Ho! bus service serves the towns and villages better, even if it takes 110 minutes for the full journey. Except of course when traffic snarls up in Barnstaple and Braunton during the summer......
Edit to add: By my calculations, there were 11 sets of manned crossing gates between Barnstaple and Ilfracombe. A legacy of building the line cheaply. Not sure about the status of the one at Shaplands Factory, as that was not a public highway.