Walking the South West Coast Path in sections

Why walk it in sections

The South West Coast Path runs for 630 miles from Minehead in Somerset to Poole Harbour in Dorset, and it climbs something in the region of 35,000 metres along the way. That is roughly four times the height of Everest, spread across cliff steps, combes, sand dunes and harbour walls. Walking it end to end takes most people six to eight weeks. Most of us do not have six to eight weeks.

The good news is that this is one of the best-served long-distance paths in Britain when it comes to public transport. You can walk a stretch, catch a bus or a train back to your bed, and start again the next morning without retracing a single step. Long weekends and week-long holidays work beautifully here. The trick is to plan in sections of four to eight days, each based around a town with a station, a bus terminus or a ferry.

Two things worth knowing before you book anything. First, accommodation in May, June and September disappears fast along the north Cornish and Exmoor coasts, so reserve early. Second, the terrain is often harder than the mileage suggests. A ten-mile day on the north Cornish cliffs, with a thousand metres of up and down, will take longer than a fifteen-mile day on the flatter Exe estuary.

The transport toolkit

Everything rests on four things: trains, coastal buses, ferries, and a bag that you are not carrying. Get these right and the path opens up.

• Rail — the main line from London to Penzance hugs the south coast from Exeter westwards, and branch lines reach Exmouth, Barnstaple, Looe, Newquay, Falmouth, St Ives and St Erth. Almost every section of the path has a station within a short bus ride.
• Coastal buses — seasonal open-top services run along the coast in summer, linking Minehead with Porlock and Lynmouth, and Padstow with Newquay, St Ives and Penzance. In winter these shrink drastically, so check timetables before you commit.
• Ferries and foot crossings — Padstow to Rock, Fowey to Polruan and Bodinnick, Salcombe to East Portlemouth, Dartmouth to Kingswear, St Mawes to Falmouth, and the Studland chain ferry. These save long inland detours and are often the highlight of the day.
• Luggage transfer — many walkers pay for a daily bag move between overnight stops and carry only a day sack. It turns a hard section into a genuinely enjoyable one.

North Devon and the Exmoor coast

Begin at Minehead, where the path starts beside the harbour. The first two days climb straight into Exmoor, through sessile oak woods and heather above the Bristol Channel, and the section past Culbone and Porlock Weir is one of the quietest on the whole route. From Porlock the path runs west to Lynmouth, then rounds the Valley of Rocks — a strange, dramatic jumble of sandstone towers above the sea — before dropping into Lynton. The cliff railway between Lynton and Lynmouth is worth the fare even if you have legs left.

Beyond Combe Martin the path becomes genuinely rugged, with big climbs into and out of Ilfracombe, then the long sweep of sand at Woolacombe and Croyde. The coastal bus along the A39 and the branch line into Barnstaple make this an easy section to split into four or five days.

North Cornwall: Hartland to Padstow

This is the hardest and most spectacular stretch in the West Country. The rock between Hartland Quay and Bude is folded like a crushed accordion, and the path follows it relentlessly up and down. Expect steep, tight valleys at Morwenstow, Crackington Haven and Boscastle. Allow shorter days here than your ego suggests.

Tintagel, with its castle ruins on the headland, and Port Isaac, with its tight whitewashed lanes, both reward a half day off the path. Buses connect Bude, Boscastle, Tintagel, Port Isaac and Wadebridge, and Wadebridge has rail links on the branch line from Bodmin Parkway. Finish this section in Padstow, where the ferry across the Camel to Rock saves a long detour around the estuary.

South Cornwall: Padstow to Plymouth

South of Padstow the cliffs soften into sand. Bedruthan Steps, Perranporth and St Agnes come in quick succession, then the path turns south-west to St Ives. The stretch from St Ives to Zennor and on to Pendeen is a granite wilderness of moorland, mine engine houses and dark, cold coves. Land's End arrives almost without warning.

From there the path passes Porthcurno, Mousehole and Penzance before crossing the Lizard, the most southerly point in Britain, where the serpentine rock gives the sea an improbable turquoise colour. Branch lines from Par to Newquay, St Erth to St Ives, Truro to Falmouth and Liskeard to Looe mean you can base yourself in one town for several nights. Ferries at Fowey, Helford and St Mawes keep the walking honest.

South Devon and Dorset: Plymouth to Poole

Cross the Tamar at Plymouth and the character changes again. South Devon is softer, greener and more wooded. The path runs through Wembury and Newton Ferrers to Salcombe, where a ferry crosses to East Portlemouth, then on to Dartmouth and the ferry from Kingswear. The Riviera Line between Exeter and Paignton is one of the loveliest train journeys in England and runs right beside the path at Dawlish.

Beyond Exmouth comes the long, straight pebble ridge of Budleigh Salterton and the red cliffs of Sidmouth, then the fossil-rich undercliffs around Lyme Regis. Golden Cap is the highest cliff on the south coast, and the descent to Seatown after it is tough on tired knees.

The final section runs along Chesil Beach to Portland, then east through Lulworth, Swanage and Studland to the chain ferry and the finish at Poole Harbour. The open-top bus along the Jurassic Coast links most of the villages, and trains from Weymouth, Wareham and Poole make the last days straightforward. Save this stretch for a clear-weather week — the views back along the coast are the finest reward the path offers.