At 630 miles, the South West Coast Path is by far the longest of Britain’s National Trails, well over twice the length of its nearest rival. To walk it in one go needs a spare month at least, and few of us have such an opportunity. But there’s no hardship in returning to the beautiful western counties time after time to complete the trail bit by bit.
I completed Land’s End to Tintagel as part of my cross-England walk in 2006 and 2007, and went on the five further miles to Boscastle the following year. In bits and pieces since 2001, I’ve walked southwards from Barnstaple to Boscastle, and in August / September 2015 completed Minehead to Barnstaple, though in a rather peculiar order!
But for the southern section – 350 miles – I’ve completed just a tenth, from Exmouth to Seatown. If I had a lifetime, no problem, but as I reached 70 in 2021 there are no promises, just an intention.
The author in civvies at the start point, Minehead 2015
* Sends you to the Cornwall page of my cross-England walk
Land’s End to Starcross will probably be walked in three stages, with breaks at Falmouth and Plymouth.
Exmouth to Studland is complete only as far as Seatown.
