Coastwalk

Mevagissey → Par

Distance: 12.4 miles
Ascent: 811 metres
Duration: 5 hours 52 minutes

View from the ferry
« Not walked | Fowey »

The ideal lunch-spot is somewhere deserted. It's up high, with a good view of where you've come from and where you're going to. A place to linger and breathe slowly. If you're walking from Mevagissey to Par, that spot is Black Head - a small promontory fort separated from the mainland by a narrow isthmus.

We saw the headland from the ferry that took us to the start of the walk this morning and as we ate the ferry passed again on its return trip to Fowey.

About half a mile further west we saw a beautifully isolated house. The path approached the grounds beside a recently felled tree whose stump had been carved to form the image of "Morwenna".

I'd certainly recommend this walk to anyone. Better still - if you're up for a longer distance - tack on the Par to Fowey leg. Start the day at Mevagissey and review the walk from the sea on the way home on the Fowey to Mevagissey ferry.

Coastwalk

Swanage → Sandbanks

Distance: 7.93 miles
Ascent: 212 metres
Duration: 3 hours 24 minutes

The end
« Chapman's Pool | Christchurch »

The South West Coast Path is 630 miles long and it ends here.

Unlike most long-distance walkers reaching the Poole Ferry we're not in a position to celebrate. At 193 miles we've walked just one quarter of the National Trail but for the first time I realised we'd definitely complete the whole thing one day.

The high cliffs of Old Harry Rocks and the long sandy beach at Studland represent the path in miniature. Today's walk would make a good final chapter.

But our eyes are set beyond the south-west. The length of the entire British coast is harder to track down. Most measurements put it between six and seven thousand miles and by coincidence I've walked about a quarter of that too. I'm less sure about whether I'll ever complete it.

Still, there's no point leaving a job undone. There's plenty more rock and sand to see yet.

Coastwalk

Chapman's Pool → Swanage

Distance: 9.60 miles
Ascent: 459 metres
Duration: 3 hours 48 minutes

Endure
« Kimmeridge Bay | Sandbanks »

"How's the Great Walk going?" was a question I heard more than once at Greenbelt this year. It's an odd term to hear. This Coastwalk is just what I do, not some special endurance test.

John may be feeling the same way about his M62 walk so as an act of solidarity on his first day we're using the post-Greenbelt weekend to pick up again in Dorset.

From Chapman's Pool the walk immediately climbs 120 metres to the cliff-top before plunging to near sea level and rising steeply again on a seemingly never-ending staircase to St Alban's Head. It's a tough warm-up (did someone deny endurance?) with the remainder of the day being a far easier stroll on grass-topped cliffs.

Highlights included the twelfth century chapel of St Adhelm on that first headland, its thick walls deftly separating the sound of the sea from the silence of the vaulted room.

Further one curious sight followed another: the tidal swimming pool cut by quarrymen at Dancing Ledge; the quarries turned Victorian tourist attraction at Tilly Whim Caves; the stone signs at Durlston Country Park banning "hunting dogs and guns" followed finally by a huge concrete globe dedicated to all of God's creation. All hundreds of years old. All endured.

Coastwalk

Kingswear → Brixham

Distance: 12.3 miles
Ascent: 823 metres
Duration: 5 hours 39 minutes

Don't forget
« Torcross | Torquay »

They say that the stretch of coast round the Kingswear Peninsular is the most beautiful in Devon. I can imagine that. But today we've had more than enough to distract us from the scenery.

Let's start with the rain. (It always does.) Waterproof jackets helped but when the drizzle's spent a day carefully coating the long grass that lined the path, waterproof trousers were far more important. (We forgot them.)

And then the map. Be sure to know where you're going. The path is easily followed, but when tiredness and dampness sets in you'll find yourself literally walking in circles. Inner Froward Point may have been well worth a detour but that wasn't our plan when we found ourselves climbing back up to the watch station rather than progressing to the next headland. (Hint: the watch station have a great detailed map that'll help you out of this maze.)

The sun threatened to reappear as we approached Brixham and with it came the holidaymakers. As the tide slowly filled the swimming pool on the prom, two shirtless holidaymakers took a new approach to fishing. Holding their nets across the inlet pipes they pulled more than their fair share out the water.

Coastwalk

Brixham → Torquay

Distance: 8.54 miles
Ascent: 318 metres
Duration: 3 hours 24 minutes

The Riviera
« Kingswear | Teignmouth »

The highlight of our annual fortnight's family holiday at Gran's in Teignmouth was always the fair. For seven days they'd fill the grass between hotels and prom with all kinds of exciting rides and machines.

Today's walk took us along the prom in Paignton and - what would you know? - the fair was in town. Not the fair of my childhood though. The big wheel, waltzers and dodgems were replaced by JCBs, silage trucks and mobile document shredding vans.

For the elderly folk lining the benches of the prom however, their 99 Flakes were far more interesting than the Chartered Institution of Wastes Management Exhibition. Paignton's not quite the Riviera I remember.

Coastwalk

Starcross → Exmouth

Distance: 11.1 miles
Ascent: 211 metres
Duration: 4 hours 2 minutes

The Estuary
« Teignmouth | Budleigh Salterton »

Back in 2001 when Jez and I walked from Teignmouth to Exmouth the seasonal ferry across the River Exe wasn't running. Today's walk filled in that gap, replacing the boat trip with a walk up and down the estuary.

The west bank was far more enjoyable than the east. The going was easy past Powderham Castle deer park, then further upstream along the towpath of the disused Exeter Canal.

Opposite the village of Topsham modern communication met an old way of life. A notice by the path gave the mobile phone number of the ferryman whose "Aye, I see you" response was reassuring and warming as the rain began to fall.

Between Topsham and Lympstone there is no path to speak of. The casual coastwalker would do well to hop on a bus to avoid three miles of major road but Lympstone itself should not be missed. The jumble of streets and alleyways lead down to the sea where residents had hung their laundry to dry in the breaks between the drizzle.

The path into Exmouth is currently under major reconstruction. When complete this will be a real gem. I hope they find a way of continuing it north to Topsham.

Coastwalk

No argument here

"England's coastline is a national treasure," according to the Secretary of State for the Environment. There's no way I'll argue with that.

It looks like my dreams of a full British Coast Path are edging closer to reality.

Arts , Coastwalk

Hightown → Liverpool

Distance: 10.1 miles
Ascent: 167 metres
Duration: 3 hours 44 minutes

Any old iron
« Not walked | Not walked »

Just beyond the prom on Waterloo beach one hundred men stare out towards the windfarms of the North Wales coast. This is what we've travelled two hundred miles to see. It's our last chance before Another Place is uprooted and the Iron Men move on.

The work is more complex than Still Falling, Gormley's Portland carving. There the subject is beyond help, but here the state of the tide provides one hundred different experiences to empathise with. (It's like a prototype Blob Tree picture: are you the one being dressed up by a group of middle-aged daytrippers? Are you feeling the full force of each wave crashing on you? Are you about to take your last breath before finally succumbing to the tide?)

Beyond the Iron Men we walked the dock road into Liverpool, John Davies providing the local context.

On the docks huge piles of scrap metal lay waiting to be taken away to far-off places. (Do you think the Men are jealous?) Nearer the town centre the working docks gave way to derelict buildings waiting their turn to be transformed into luxury apartments.

I get the feeling that little stands still in Liverpool. Maybe that's why the Iron Men have proved so popular: a reminder that static is a viable option.

Coastwalk

Lelant Saltings → St Ives

Distance: 4.36 miles
Ascent: 176 metres
Duration: 1 hour 55 minutes

Dot-to-dot
« Not walked | Not walked »

Another hotel, another walk. Normally I like to complete a continuous section of coastline but this holiday is different. We've fractured the Cornish coastline into four with our disjointed walks. On eight future occasions we'll start or finish coastwalks at a place we visited on our honeymoon. This is a good thing. I love these physical reminders.

Coastwalk

Polzeath → Padstow

Distance: 3.59 miles
Ascent: 135 metres
Duration: 1 hour 39 minutes

What you're missing
« Port Gaverne | Not walked »

The photograph is of St Enodoc's church, Daymer Bay. In its churchyard is the grave of John Betjeman. You won't see it if you follow the coast path.

This ancient church is nestled amongst the clipped grass of a golf course and has stood watch over the mouth of the River Camel for seven hundred years. It's well worth the detour.

We took the ferry from Padstow to Rock this morning and headed to Polzeath by an inland route so that we could visit the church before walking along the coast back to the Padstow/Rock ferry.

The coast path runs along low cliffs at Polzeath. Below us circles of surfers received tuition while families clung on to the last few hours of summer.

Coastwalk

Par → Fowey

Distance: 6.81 miles
Ascent: 346 metres
Duration: 3 hours 32 minutes

Whatever the weather
« Mevagissey | Polruan »

I swear it was Emma's idea to do another walk today. This isn't going to be the walking and youth hostels honeymoon Liz is hinting at, but the weather was so gorgeous yesterday it'd be a crime to stay indoors today.

You can guess what happened next.

Somewhere on the short bus ride from our hotel to the start of the walk, the blue sky vanished. The moment we disembarked the rain started. Costcutter became our shelter.

Striking south towards the Gribbin Daymark the sun won out, providing a wonderful late summer day to complete the walk in.

Coastwalk

Fowey → Polruan

Distance: 4.27 miles
Ascent: 210 metres
Duration: 1 hour 57 minutes

The Hall Walk
« Par | Not walked »

It's not officially part of the South West Coast Path, but the Hall Walk is a scenic extension to the route along the banks of the Fowey estuary. It also makes an excellent half-day circular walk for couples honeymooning in Fowey.

The hotel we're staying in is on the waterfront so the coastwalk started the minute we stepped onto Fowey's narrow main street. One mile upstream we took the ferry to Bodinnick, then meandered through the woods on the east bank of the river south to Polruan.

At the top of the village - beside the sole remaining wall of St Saviour's chapel - a coastguard records traffic in and out of the Fowey estuary. From here the contrast between the sheltered estuary and open sea is unmistakable. Below this cliff a white wooden cross stands defiantly on rocks that have presumably wrecked many a ship.

Coastwalk

Freiston Shore → Wrangle

Distance: 5.82 miles
Ascent: 83 metres
Duration: 1 hour 45 minutes

Take no chances
« Boston | Not walked »

I left my car at Boston railway station and after two minutes' silence I took a taxi to the start of the walk. The ride was short and I was pleased to not be treated to the xenophobic ranting I've had from previous Lincolnshire drivers. This is a strange place to be today.

On the coast I waved to the man in the '52-reg Astra and twenty paces beyond his car I hear the doors unlock.

"Where you going?" he asked. Then - softening - he explained, "I locked the doors, see. You never can be too careful about these parts. Like you with those cows."

(In the field before the car park I'd taken a wide berth around a herd of cows that were standing on the path.)

"You never can be too careful," he repeated.

In his right hand he held a heavy pair of binoculars. I presume they were there when he was in the car though he could have brought them for extra protection. ("You never can be too careful," he might have said as he swung them in defense.)

My friend looked back towards The Wash. "There's something out there. Wasn't there on Friday. Appeared on Monday," he told me. "Don't know what it is." He's taking no chances.

And as he talked a pair of military aircraft flew past and dropped bombs on the Wainfleet range a mile or so to the north. Someone else taking no chances.

Coastwalk

Anglesey, Wales, ... Britain?

More interesting than today's opening of the Anglesey Coast Path is the suggestion that it may soon be followed by a complete Wales Coast Path.

If this gathers momentum, a recognised path round the whole of our island would be the next logical step. If nothing else I can dream.

Coastwalk

The end of the coast

For the past twelve weeks I've been watching an episode of the BBC's Coast programme every Sunday night. Last night I travelled with the presenters from The Wash round to Dover - the only one of their segments which I've walked in entirety.

It's been a fantastic series, telling stories of people and places that are often overlooked. The frequent sweeping aerial views provide glimpses of hundreds of shared secrets: the long sweep of Shingle Street, the towers at Reculver, the ferries waltzing in Dover harbour.

The series book is a worthwhile read too. Its chapters break the coastline into the same segments as the series, but that's the end of the similarities. Each medium tells different stories, picks different places and has a different tone.

Both are great souvenirs of my walk. Both tempt me to revisit places I've been to before. The striped cliffs of Hunstanton are famous, but walking along the tops I passed their layers of bold geology without noticing.

Thank goodness that although my twelve week armchair voyage is over, I've barely scratched the surface of the real thing.

Coastwalk

Osmington Mills → Lulworth Cove

Distance: 6.53 miles
Ascent: 489 metres
Duration: 3 hours 11 minutes

Easter Sunday
« Weymouth | Flower's Barrow »

Walking up Burning Cliff from Ringstead, the melody of a hymn drifted down the path to greet us. Occasionally voices could be picked out above the sound of the harmonium. We joined the small congregation of St Catherine's church on the grass just in time to hear to the Gospel. Easter Sunday had come looking for us.

The coast path from Holworth to West Lulworth is a strenuous switch-back of chalk down culminating in the famous natural arch at Durdle Door and Lulworth Cove. At the start of the walk we had the path to ourselves but by the end we were just two more walkers in a conga line of holidaymakers.

The car park at West Lulworth and the congregation at Holworth represent different sides of the modern Easter Sunday. We should have stayed longer at St Catherine's.

Coastwalk

Weymouth → Osmington Mills

Distance: 4.82 miles
Ascent: 297 metres
Duration: 2 hours 11 minutes

Relaxing
« Castletown | Lulworth Cove »

What's the point of walking if you're not having fun? With that in mind Emma and I knew fairly soon after setting off this morning that we wouldn't reach our intended destination of Lulworth Cove. We found ourselves walking straight into a strong wind as we headed out on Weymouth prom and even so were outpaced by a limping, bearded, 'serious' coastwalker.

By the time we were at the massive Riviera Hotel at Bowleaze Cove the wind had been replaced by a few spots of rain. We booked a taxi to pick us up from the Smugglers Inn two miles further along and settled into a more enjoyable, less stressed finish to the morning's walk.

Coastwalk

Kimmeridge Bay → Chapman's Pool

Distance: 4.40 miles
Ascent: 351 metres
Duration: 1 hour 59 minutes

Crumbling cliffs
« Flower's Barrow | Swanage »

Today's walk saw us re-visiting the Jurrasic Coast whose cliff paths we started walking last July. From Kimmeridge Bay, we climbed to Clavell Tower, an impressive folly perched perilously close to the cliff edge. Later this year the Landmark Trust plan to move the tower back away from the edge and turn it into a holiday home.

At the Freshwater Steps waterfall, what I took to be abandoned crates turned out on closer inspection to be an old flower arrangement spelling 'DAD'. Further along the cliff-top path reached the summit of Houns-tout where the crumbling cliff left craggy outcrops and revealed perfectly layered cross-sections. Every cliff here tells a different story.

After the small, sunlit cove of Chapman's Bay we turned inland to complete the circuit back to Kimmeridge. Although mist obscured the view of the furthest headlands, there were plenty of spectacular views to show us how far we'd come since we started last year.

Coastwalk

Ravenglass → Silecroft

Distance: 16.0 miles
Ascent: 392 metres
Duration: 5 hours 20 minutes

On the horizon
« Sellafield | Millom »

Had there not been workmen on the Eskmeals Railway Viaduct I might have dashed along it. Had the River Esk been lower I might have crossed at the ford. I'm glad I didn't. Had I not walked along the wood-fringed riverside path I would have missed this view of Scafell. On Monday I talked of snow-topped mountains; today I present the evidence.

During the second half of the walk my attention was fixed on the horizon in the opposite direction. Rising out of the sea forty miles away, the Isle of Man was clearly visible.

Coastwalk

Silecroft → Millom

Distance: 8.26 miles
Ascent: 288 metres
Duration: 2 hours 56 minutes

The impact of people
« Ravenglass | Not walked »

Every step of the coast I'm reminded of the impact people have on it.

Today's sights included the high fence of a prison; wind turbines slicing the air; Escape to Light - a sculpture to honour lives lost in sea rescue; the great iron bloom which is the sole remains of the Millom Iron Works; Hannah and Daniel who came to join me for the last mile or so.

Who says there's nothing to see at the seaside?

Coastwalk

Sellafield → Ravenglass

Distance: 8.26 miles
Ascent: 139 metres
Duration: 2 hours 21 minutes

Anticlockwise is best
« St Bees | Silecroft »

Modern mythology paints the Sellafield Nuclear Site as a huge eyesore that spoils the Lake District National Park. My first glimpse of the works came as I descended St Bees Head last year but it didn't seem as incongruous as the steelworks of Workington or other industrial sites. Even as I came near the plant was hidden behind the dunes, refusing to spoil a good walk by the sea.

What I learned today is that this is just an illusion. Looking back over my shoulder at regular intervals the site loomed large and threatening over the village of Seascale. Further on at Drigg the low-level waste storage site is another huge reminder of the nuclear industry's impact on the area.

That's not to say this hasn't been a beautiful walk. All day I've had a clear view of a snow-topped Scafell, and as I reached the end of the walk the sun was setting over the receding tide.

The real lesson is that if you want to walk this stretch of coast, make sure you do it anticlockwise. The view is much better that way.

Coastwalk

Pwllheli → Porthmadog

Distance: 18.0 miles
Ascent: 399 metres
Duration: 5 hours 10 minutes

Walk, swim, climb
« Not walked | Harlech »

Walking out of season heightens the differences between landowners who care about walkers and those who consider us worthless riffraff. An early part of today's walk crossed through heath and gorse which had been especially cut back which regular poles pointing out the path. In contrast towards the end I found myself facing a seven foot high security fence where the public right of way should have been.

The Llŷn Coastal Path currently under construction is responsible for the former condition and will presumably eventually eradicate the latter. But even then natural obstacles will still appear, such as the flooded fields and eroding cliffs which marked the mid-section of today's walk.

Coastwalk

Barmouth → Tywyn

Distance: 12.9 miles
Ascent: 193 metres
Duration: 4 hours 10 minutes

The bridge
« Harlech | Aberdyfi »

I've enjoyed using the train this week to take me to the beginning of each walk. The line between Machynlleth and Porthmadog is spectacular, sandwiched between the road and the sea, clinging to the side of the cliffs.

Half-way along the railway crosses the mouth of the Mawddach estuary on a half-mile long bridge. A footpath runs the length of the bridge and formed first part of this walk. There's a sixty pence toll for pedestrians but the views up the valley and across to Cadair Idris are simply stunning, even with today's overcast weather.

The middle section of the walk was far less interesting - nine miles of road walking. It would have been further still had I not looked carefully from the train on the way up for short-cuts.

If you're going to repeat this walk be sure to study the railway bridge across the Afon Dysynni just north of Tywyn. I gather there's some local pressure to construct a footbridge where an old bascule bridge took a minor road across the river. Until that time the choice is a five mile detour inland or a cheeky dash across alongside the track. A six foot high welded steel fence on the south side attempts to deter this but with a little gymnastics it's possible to drop down between the girders to the shingle below. Just don't ever expect me to climb up that way.

Coastwalk

Harlech → Barmouth

Distance: 14.8 miles
Ascent: 272 metres
Duration: 4 hours 43 minutes

Dunes
« Porthmadog | Tywyn »

Once again I'm plugging the holes in my knowledge of North Wales geography. I don't remember a time I didn't know that Harlech has a cliff-top castle. The surprise on visiting the town is that the cliff is a good half mile from the sea, separated by expansive dunes.

South of Harlech the tiny church at Llandanwg looked fascinating but was unfortunately locked. Its notice-board revealed that the chapel was founded in 435AD and that those going along to a service should remember to take a torch. I hope I'll be back some time.

Further on I made up for yesterday's road walking. After slogging my way across the towering dunes at Morfa Dyffryn the walk finished with a stunning eight-mile trek along a deserted sandy beach.

Coastwalk

Porthmadog → Harlech

Distance: 10.6 miles
Ascent: 185 metres
Duration: 3 hours 27 minutes

Along the road
« Pwllheli | Barmouth »

Two miles south-east of Porthmadog the village of Portmeirion is well known. If you're planning on visiting the village, leave the car behind and follow the first part of today's walk: across the causeway from Porthmadog then up and over the wooded headland before dropping to the village's entrance.

I spent most of the remainder of the day walking on the road. Between Ynys and Harlech it would have been possible to find a footpath slightly nearer the coastline but worried about missing the only train for three hours I opted instead for the main road.

Coastwalk

Pigeonsford → Aberporth

Distance: 7.36 miles
Ascent: 556 metres
Duration: 3 hours 8 minutes

Still chatty
« New Quay | Not walked »

Today's walk echoed the one from a fortnight ago in many ways. The steep path inclines, the long road segments and the same chatty bus driver.

Today's lesson taught us of a former home of the Earl of Kent, the true location of the oldest church in Wales and the best place to get goats' milk cheese this side of the Cambrian Mountains.

It's the last time we'll be catching the Cardi Bach. We have high hopes for the driver of the 550.

Coastwalk

Aberdyfi → Dovey Junction

Distance: 9.32 miles
Ascent: 172 metres
Duration: 2 hours 54 minutes

The wooden bridge
« Tywyn | Ynyslas »

Remember how I said I was generally law abiding? Well I didn't pass any signs that forbade me from taking my route of choice although I did have to climb through a hole in a fence. Get out your map wheel and you'll see I didn't exactly cross the Dovey at the recommended point.

That's a ten mile round-trip to Machynlleth saved then.

Coastwalk

Cadoxton → Cardiff

Distance: 18.5 miles
Ascent: 375 metres
Duration: 5 hours 59 minutes

Pedestrian-hostile
« Llantwit Beach | Not walked »

It's unfair of me to admit it, but the lasting impression I have from today's walk to Cardiff is of a city that's actively hostile to pedestrians. On reaching Penarth Marina I should have been able to complete the walk with a one-mile trundle across Cardiff Bay Barrage. Unfortunately although there's a toy-train that'll take you across, the footpath isn't planned to be opened for another three years.

Since I'm generally a law-abiding person I headed inland. The first bridge bridge across the Ely River - the A4055 - is closed to walkers; the next, the A4232 Grangetown Link can't be reached. The most faithful alternative route is to follow the A4160 Penarth Road into Grangetown, then head south on Clive Street and Ferry Road to pick up the A4232 across the River Taff.

The redevelopment of Cardiff is in full swing, and already full of icons. The Millennium Stadium and Millennium Centre are well known. The new Welsh Assembly building is well on its way towards completion, and today - on loan from across the border - the red and white England team bus was parked proudly outside the Cardiff Bay Hotel.

My first glimpse of Cardiff came from the cliffs above Penarth. This viewpoint gave me another opportunity: for the first time I could trace land on the horizon all the way from Wales to England. The Severn Bridges link the two countries. The Second Severn Crossing was visible with the naked eye but more exciting was catching a glimpse of the original Severn Bridge through my binoculars.

Here thankfully, road planners support walkers. A cycle- and foot-path across the old bridge saves coastwalkers a 100-mile round-trip up and down the Severn to Gloucester. Crossing the bridge was my original goal for this week but I've fallen short. Tomorrow it's back to mid-Wales. The Severn can wait until next summer.

Coastwalk

Llantwit Beach → Cadoxton

Distance: 16.7 miles
Ascent: 370 metres
Duration: 5 hours 13 minutes

South Wales
« Wick | Cardiff »

Rhoose Point - half-way along this walk - is as far south as you can get on mainland Wales. Its status as the country's most southerly point is marked by a tall slate monument that has attracted more than its fair share of graffiti since its erection five years ago. Rhoose itself is pushing south towards the Point, new housing estates extending into the abandoned quarries along the coast.

Barry - towards the end of the walk - is clearly a suburb of Cardiff. Once more new buildings abound, particularly in the dock areas where wide roads await the coming traffic.

My journey back to the car in Llantwit Major cements this area's reputation of fresh development. A month or so ago a new rail service started linking Barry, Rhoose and Llantwit. I can't think of anywhere else outside London that new railways are being built in the UK.

Tomorrow's walk will take me right through the centre of Cardiff where presumably the construction I've seen today would appear small-scale.

Coastwalk

Wick → Llantwit Beach

Distance: 7.10 miles
Ascent: 244 metres
Duration: 2 hours 28 minutes

Detour
« Porthcawl | Cadoxton »

Between Cwm Bach and Cwm Nash there is no right of way along the cliff-tops. Instead the coastpath detours inland along a lane south-west of the village of Wick.

I followed this detour in the pouring rain last week and today I resumed in starkly contrasting weather. However it looks as though the cliff-top route is accessible - despite not being marked on the map - and I advise anyone following to take that path. It'll save a couple of miles, and avoid the gauntlet run of two fields of sheep and four of very inquisitive cows.

The rest of the walk is on the turf above beautiful yellow cliffs, punctuated occasionally with opulent estates. Tomorrow I expect all that will change.

Coastwalk

Porthcawl → Wick

Distance: 12.4 miles
Ascent: 569 metres
Duration: 4 hours 24 minutes

The tranquil garden
« Port Talbot | Llantwit Beach »

When I set off this morning I had no idea where I'd finish the walk. Three uncertainties gave rise to this: the weather, a long stretch of sand dunes, and where to cross the Afon Ogwr.

Beyond the caravan parks on the east side of Porthcawl, the Merthyr Mawr Warren dune system extends to the Afon Ogwr. The high tide stopped me from walking along the sea-front so I set out through the dune system. Walking through dunes can be very disconcerting. The map reveals absolutely no detail for the area, yet all around you are ten, twenty metre high hills and a network of paths. The trick is to gain high ground and look to the horizon for a landmark to walk towards. That said, a tangle of sand and grass doesn't make easy progress.

I was thwarted by the next obstacle - crossing the Ogmore. A combination of the tide and the volume of water running off the hills into the river conspired to hide the stepping stones beside Ogmore Castle. By the time I eventually reached the other bank, that final hindrance was in full swing. Contrary to my thoughts, the bad weather had not passed overnight - very quickly I was soaked.

All this hassle vanished though in the surprising delight of Dunraven Park. Looking at the map now I can see the walled garden, but until I opened the gate I'd not known of it. The Victorian Walled garden was the final transformation of these few days. It took a wet, tired walker and blessed him with tranquility.

Ask me in a week's time what the enduring memory of the walk was and I'll have forgotten all about the dunes, the river and the rain. It will all be about the garden.

Coastwalk

Port Talbot → Porthcawl

Distance: 12.2 miles
Ascent: 230 metres
Duration: 4 hours 9 minutes

Further transformations
« Swansea | Wick »

A passenger on the bus this morning told me that the Port Talbot was built on steel and coal. As I walked past the Corus plant I remembered his tale that the steelworks now puts out more and better quality steel than ever before, yet employs fewer people.

The reward for the five mile industrial landscape is Kenfig Sands. I'd intended on following the rights of way through the dunes but missed the path and found myself instead on the shore just as the tide started to recede.

From here to Porthcawl almost the entire walk was along sandy beaches, interrupted only by a couple of rocky outcrops and a short splash across the Afon Cynfig. (It turns out my boots are still waterproof.)

Porthcawl itself is a lovely spot. The Coast book describes it as "a former coal port that has reinvented itself as a seaside resort". What I've seen suggests the transformation is successful and complete.

But in the B&B where I'm staying there's a poster that reads, "For every pit closed: another village dies". Perhaps this is the hint that below the surface the reconstruction continues to hurt.

Coastwalk

Swansea → Port Talbot

Distance: 11.0 miles
Ascent: 232 metres
Duration: 3 hours 12 minutes

Finished, unfinished
« Pennard Cliffs | Porthcawl »

Swansea is heading east. While the coastline towards The Mumbles is well established, one you cross the Tawe the mood changes immediately. The post-industrial land here is working hard to transform itself into something new, pregnant with possibility but not yet ready to reveal what the child will look like.

So east Swansea looks unfinished. In between the patches of wasteland are new tree-lined avenues, boutique hotels and the occasional office block complete with running fountain. This is a place to come back to in a year's time. (My guess: marinas, flats and wine bars.)

Eventually the path meets the sea again at Aberavon Sands. Like the beach south of Tywyn, this one is impossibly empty given the time of year. Its vast expanse means there's no need for wind-shields or other artificial walls that divide up busy beaches. Here everyone's guaranteed at least an acre of their own, complete with flock of seagulls for entertainment.

At the end of the beach the industry begins once more with a port somehow holding out against closure. If closure eventually comes it'll be bitter-sweet. The transformation of our ports from heavy industry to leisure facilities seems unstoppable, but at least it opens up more of the coastline for walking.

Coastwalk

Tywyn → Aberdyfi

Distance: 4.22 miles
Ascent: 103 metres
Duration: 1 hour 54 minutes

Replaying The Ashes
« Barmouth | Dovey Junction »

Yesterday's walk started thirty miles south of Aberystwyth. Today's started thirty miles to the north. Pretty soon we'll have run out of walks within a day's reach of Emma's home.

The wide, flat, sandy shore between Tywyn and Aberdyfi gives views of Happy Valley to the east, with glimpses of Cadair Idris in the distance. Back on the beach, cricket games outnumbered football by four to one. The English on holiday, or locals trying out for a new Welsh team?

Coastwalk

New Quay → Pigeonsford

Distance: 7.00 miles
Ascent: 400 metres
Duration: 2 hours 57 minutes

The Cardi Bach
« Aberaeron | Aberporth »

We cut the very end of today's walk short. Instead of circling the hill fort of Pendinaslorhdyn we followed the road from Pigeonsford into Llangranog: we were short of time and would be stuck if we missed the Cardi Bach.

The minibus was driven by the chattiest driver in Wales. I asked if the village-hopping Cardi Bach service ever got busy. "It's busy now," he said - we were the only two passengers.

All the way back to New Quay we learnt about the coastline we'd just walked. Of the seals who'd be hiding from the tourists, the listed tin building, the old quarry workings and of the German submarine.

"I swear it's true," he said. "Or at least, the local who told me swore it was true." Sometime during the First World War a German U-boat surfaced and shook the salty Irish Sea off its flanks in the tiny cove at Cwmtydu. Too tired to re-enact the spirited defence of Carregwastad Point the villagers instead invited the would-be invaders in for tea and cake.

Coastwalk , Tech

It's a start

I promised maps; here's a first one: the product of my software mangling some data I found online which I then fed into Excel and manually coloured in Photoshop. The yellow shows the parts of the coastline I've walked.

Give me 'till the end of the month and things will get a lot more impressive. (For a start I'll no longer be pushing the limits of desktop spreadsheet applications to draw the things.)

Coastwalk

Lulworth Cove → Flower's Barrow

Distance: 4.07 miles
Ascent: 467 metres
Duration: 2 hours 22 minutes

Looking down from the range
« Osmington Mills | Kimmeridge Bay »

It's the weekend so that makes it 'walk across a firing range' day. Today we returned to walk the other half of the Lulworth range.

Future coastwalkers should note that while the path from West Lulworth to Little Bindon climbs high over Bindon hill, an alternative along the beach of Lulworth Cove seems possible. That said, I'm glad we took the high route. Looking down at the natural harbour it's possible to make out the interference patterns in the waves as those generated by each headland cross.

It's rewarding to look down from the path a little further on too. The fossilised remains of a forest are visible in the cliffs below the firing range: strange circular mounds and hollow formations of rock. This is the Jurassic Coast at its most raw.

Coastwalk

Castletown → Weymouth

Distance: 5.97 miles
Ascent: 137 metres
Duration: 3 hours 7 minutes

Waiting for 2012
« Chiswell | Osmington Mills »

It's exciting times for the far northern fringes of Portland. The new Sailing Academy at Osprey Quay will host the Olympic sailing in 2012 and the whole area seems pregnant with development opportunities.

Back across the causeway the path from Wyke Regis the path is straightforward and pleasant, following initially the course of an old railway and later the prom into old Weymouth.

I've been to Weymouth just once before. At Easter in 1983 mum took us four children to Jersey for a week. We had some time to kill before our ferry set sail so we walked along the sea front. As you can see (that's Jez in the left-hand photograph; I'm the one in the unflattering picture on the right) not much has changed in twenty years. It'll be interesting to see how much changes in the next seven.

Coastwalk

Abbotsbury → Chiswell

Distance: 14.2 miles
Ascent: 367 metres
Duration: 6 hours 6 minutes

Avoiding the beach
« West Bay | Castletown »

For seventeen miles the high shingle bank of Chesil Beach runs from near Abbotsbury to Chiswell, its pebbles linking the island of Portland to the mainland. So rather than describe a relentless plod along the beach we made our way along the landward side of the Fleet lagoon.

(We have other excuses for not walking the beach: we wanted to avoid disturbing ground-nesting birds; we suspected one section of the beach to be closed due to activity on the Chickerell rifle range; we were worried about being robbed by pirates; we're just plain lazy. Take your pick.)

In the end it wasn't the rifle range that forced us to detour yet further inland. A short distance after Chickerell Hive Point a cow had just given birth beside the gate where we were to enter her field. The detour added a mile or so but seemed the best choice for all.

It's been another baking day and by the time we reached the causeway linking Wyke Regis to Portland we were exhausted. Walkers following in our steps should know there's a taxi office in the first buildings on the island on the left. They weren't surprised about where we wanted a lift to. Especially since the alternative was turning right and walking back along the beach.

Coastwalk

Chiswell → Castletown

Distance: 10.6 miles
Ascent: 428 metres
Duration: 5 hours 12 minutes

The island
« Abbotsbury | Weymouth »

There seems to be some confusion as to the spelling of our starting point. My map names the village "Chesil" while Emma's map - and all the local signs - call it "Chiswell". The point isn't worth arguing; we finished less than half a mile from the start, having completed a circuit of the island we've been staying on. (This project would be so much easier if I lived on Portland.)

Portland seems to be an island with no centre. Quarries occupy almost all the uninhabited land. Quarries so deep I worry that the sea will flood the island from the centre.

The most interesting is the labyrinthine Tout Quarry, now a sculpture park. Here in 1983 Antony Gormley carved the first work, a life-size figure falling down the rockface. It was a treat to see, at a time when I'm looking forward to seeing more of Gormley's work soon on the Sefton coast.

The rest of the western coast continued the theme of active and abandoned quarries until finally a wide expanse of common ground opened out and we reach the brace of lighthouses at Portland Bill.

Sadly we can't tell you about the eastern coast: in the space of a minute the clear blue skies vanished as the sea mist rolled in once more.

Coastwalk

West Bay → Abbotsbury

Distance: 8.05 miles
Ascent: 205 metres
Duration: 3 hours 33 minutes

The mist
« Lyme Regis | Chiswell »

The mist was the defining feature of today's walk. The guidebook kept taunting us with "fine views along the length of Chesil Bank" while the best we could hope for was the occasional glimpse of the next field.

We stopped the walk at Abbotsbury, a charming - but rather overpriced - tourist village. We'd love to tell you about the newly hatched swans but since the Swanery's entrance fee seemed to offer little more than another walk down to the same body of water we'd been following all day, we can't.

Instead we can recommend the Old School tea-room, and exhibition on Abbotsbury during the Second World War that's currently being presented in the school. It's a very wordy display but well worth spending time over - each board based on painstakingly researched oral history.

(Today is also - for those who like to be accurate - the day to leave birthday greetings for Emma.)

Coastwalk

Flower's Barrow → Kimmeridge Bay

Distance: 3.92 miles
Ascent: 188 metres
Duration: 2 hours 6 minutes

Across the firing range
« Lulworth Cove | Chapman's Pool »

Emma and I are in Dorset this week, closing off the gap in my coastwalk between West Bay and Sandbanks. Right in the middle of this section is an army tank range. It's beautiful scenery, but a logistically difficult walk. The MoD only allow access for walkers at the weekend and getting from one end to the other is possible only by foot or car.

Today then, two hours after leaving the car we finally began the coastwalk. We'd turned the range into two circular walks and were knocking off the eastern half.

En route to the start we passed through extensive areas of MoD firing range, complete with warnings of unexploded shells. This area was 'evacuated' by the MoD in 1943. When the village of Tyneham was commandeered, residents had one month to vacate their homes. Wooden panels inside the church tell the stories of the families who were forced to leave. They are still waiting to move back.

Requisition of the land has meant that modern agricultural practices have not been adopted. Consequently there is a rich diversity of plants and animals present on the crumbling chalky cliffs; orchids were one of the several unique species we saw today.

Other features of note on this walk: one of us stepped in a cow-pat. A fresh one. And repeated the trick half an hour later. One of us left the nice cake behind. One of us fell down a cattle grid. Both of us fought the brambles, gorse, thistles and nettles of an overgrown and little-used path. Either that, or we were lost. Both of us have probably been out in the sun too long (which may explain some of the above).

Coastwalk

Dovey Junction → Ynyslas

Distance: 8.75 miles
Ascent: 119 metres
Duration: 2 hours 21 minutes

The furnace
« Aberdyfi | Borth »

At one point I'd planned to catch the train to Aberystwyth for Emma's birthday celebrations tonight. It turned out cheaper, faster and more convenient to hire a car. And of course when I booked the car I wasn't aware that yesterday driving would be the shrewd move.

However I got here the result