ANNA MELVILLE-JAMES escapes modern living and discovers the quiet beauty on this Bristol Channel gem, Lundy

WHO NEEDS progress? Sometimes you just want a world where things stand still and on Lundy Island, 11 miles off the north Devon coast in the Bristol Channel, nothing much has changed in decades.

It's a timeless quality that makes this granite outcrop, with a population of just 27, plus Lundy ponies, puffins and rare pygmy shrews, the perfect retreat from the modern mainland.

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Don't judge the island by its size (it's just three miles long and half a mile wide). Lundy's colourful history is etched with tales of Vikings, pirates, Knights Templar and Civil War, as well as various private owners of the island who have all left their eccentric mark. One example is the world's oldest private postal service.

Lundy, now owned by the National Trust, is managed by The Landmark Trust, which rents out the 23 holiday lets there. Other than this natural ration of visitors, the car-free island is left largely to its own quiet beauty and The Famous Five vibe of innocent freedoms. It's a place where you can still have adventures and picnics without seeing another soul. Bliss.

SUITS YOU
Lundy has a west shore of inlets, caves and rock stacks battered by Atlantic seas and a milder, sheltered east coast of trees, rhododendrons and the rare, inedible Lundy cabbage. The Lundy warden runs guided walks around the island, as well as snorkelling safaris (June-September, priced £5) to show off the rich ecosystem.

Lundy's waters became England's first Marine Conservation zone in January and with Gulf Stream currents, the island is a top UK diving spot offering such warm-water species as sea fans and cup corals, and numerous shipwrecks including the intact MV Robert.

On land there are no big glossy attractions. Instead you create your own fun. Hunt for Neolithic burial chambers, visit lighthouses, scramble down a rope ladder to Quarry Beach or look out for the remains of a crashed Second World War Luftwaffe bomber that juts out from a savage Lundy cliff fissure.

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The island's oldest building is a 13th-century castle and there is also a small Victorian church built by the sugar baron William Hudson Heaven, who bought Lundy in 1834.

One unusual pursuit is to go "letterboxing". This traditional all-weather adventure involves finding 27 postboxes hidden on the island. Each one has a logbook to record your visit and a unique stamp that you can take an impression of to prove you were there.

LAZING AND GRAZING
The island's 23 Landmark Trust (01628 825925/www.landmarktrust.org.uk) rental properties range in size and character. These include Millcombe House, from £192 per night (sleeps 12) and Castle Keep East, £66 per night (sleeps two). Both prices are based on a minimum two-night stay. Book ahead: Lundy's popularity means accommodation is snapped up months in advance. There are also 40 camping spaces for hardier souls but booking through Lundy Shore Office (01271 863636) is necessary. From £9pp, per night.

Lundy has one well-stocked shop for self-catering.

Eating out means going to the island's only pub-cumrestaurant, the Marisco Tavern. Order a pint of Lundy Experience ale and tuck into an English fry-up.

Then while away a lazy afternoon with the pub's pile of board games.

GETTING THERE:
Lundy Shore Office (01271 863636/www.lundyisland.co.uk). The island's own ship, the MS Oldenburg, sails from Bideford and Ilfracombe between April and October from £56 return.