The L&B rises and falls several times along its length. Starting at above sea level, The first , through Barnstaple, and along the Yeo Valley stays nearly level. "Collard Bridge" marks the start of an climb, mainly at one in fifty (2%), to Blackmoor Gate. A slight down-gradient follows, about m long, towards Parracombe Bank, and the start of another climb, about , to Woody Bay – at , the highest railway station in southern England. The line then falls, again mostly at one in fifty - to Lynton & Lynmouth station, still above the sea, and hidden by the landscape from the town of Lynton. The minimum radius on curves was .