Overview
Discover challenging and dramatic walking trails shaped by the footsteps of traders, smugglers, saints and pirates. Cornish walking trails will reveal ancient tin mines, clifftop castles, timeless fishing villages and wild moors as you travel through a landscape of huge cliffs and hidden coves that goes back to the depths of time itself. In between the coastal drama, iconic harbours such as St Ives and Padstow give walkers access to some of the UK‘s best restaurants and coastal hotels. A county encircled by the wild Atlantic ocean, there is over 330 miles of spectacular world class coast path here taking you around the farthest corners of England - put simply it feels like walking on the edge of the world.
Stretching from coast to coast across the southwest of England, Devon is a richly diverse county with rugged shores and cliffs in the north, and classic Victorian seaside resorts in the south. In between you'll find tranquil green pastures, wooded gorges and the two dramatic wild moors in the National Parks of Dartmoor and Exmoor. Choose Devon for its walking variety, and you'll find that the popular image of cream teas and thatched cottages is true - but that Devon is so much more once you explore it on two feet. Coast to coast routes like the Two Moors Way will offer a journey through it all from the wild northern shores that inspired the Romantic poets to the maritime ports of the south coast.
Free your soul and clear your mind! Walking on the wild moors of these National Parks is a wonderful antidote to modern living. England's last true wilderness, Dartmoor offers 365 square miles of virtually uninhabited freedom with high moors and twisted dramatic granite tors a land of myths, ghosts and legends. Exmoor, its smaller and more gentle neighour, is 250 Square miles of near perfect and unique beauty, with high uplands swathed in heather and steep, wooded gorges and rushing streams. See Dartmoor ponies and Exmoor stags in these wildlife rich areas, home to 30 species of mammals and over 240 types of bird. The moors offer a unique opportunity for more challenging walking where the only human sound you will hear is the rhythm of your own breath.
Avoid the crowds and discover “Secret Somerset” missed by so many rushing headlong for the far South West. The 'land of the summer people' was named in a time when this area could only be visited in the summer months as the sea receded. Today its a rich, fertile and 'for real' landscape crowned by the fine walking ridges of the Mendip and Quantock Hills both protected areas of outstanding natural beauty. Rising up over King Arthur‘s Vale of Avalon along with the magical Tor at Glastonbury, walkers will find hidden gorges, wooded combes and the best inland panoramas of the South West. Also boasting its own Jurassic Coast Path, providing a gateway into the wilds of Exmoor National Park, Somerset offers walking routes without the crowds for those who want to find..... what the rest miss.
Dorset has a comfortable old world “English” feel to it and its walking routes traverse a rather more green and agricultural land of thatched cottages, cream teas.... and fossils ! Walkers here will find the more gentle rolling farmland, pretty villages and chalk ridges beloved by Thomas Hardy that sweep down to end abruptly at the World Heritage Jurassic Coast. Here, alongside the sea, those after more challenging routes can take a walking holiday through time itself amongst the dramatic chalk stacks, cliffs and arches of the Dorsetshire fossil coast. An area that can be very busy in high season but often suits walkers looking for more gentle and less exposed walking than the far west of the region.
Wales offers some of the best walking and outdoor activities to be had anywhere in the world. The 870-mile Welsh Coast Path was only fully opened in 2012 and is the world's first walk along the entire coast of a nation. The terrain is on an equally grand scale with towering cliffs, vast stretches of unspoilt golden sands, imposing castles, offshore islands and to the north there is the backdrop of Snowdonia National Park with its stunning mountains. Wales in general offers walkers great value for money compared to more popular areas like Cornwall with walking options to suit everyone, from those who want the cosmopolitan restaurants and facilities of towns like Tenby and St Davids, through to isolated and remote forests and coastal hills that sit on the very cusp of the Snowdonian Peaks. Bursting with confidence and pride in its “Welshness”, its Celtic history, language and culture there has never been a better time for walkers to enter Wales.
The South West Coast Path is the UK's longest National Trail and one of the top ten walking routes in the world. It snakes, dips and rises continuously on its way through a staggering 1014km (630 miles) of pristine coastline, 450 miles of which is through nationally protected areas. It's a challenge too; walking the entire South West Coast Path is the equivalent to scaling Mount Everest four times! From towering cliffs to hidden coves, ghostly tin mines to lush subtropical wooded creeks. One minute a dramatic rock theatre hewn out of the cliffs, the next a prehistoric fossilized forest or a 20thC Art Deco Island Hotel. What sets The South West Coast Path apart from other trails is that around almost every corner is yet another surprise as you retrace the footsteps and histories of the tin miners, fisherman, smugglers, wreckers and the customs men who chased them.
12th September 2023- We are sorry but we are now fully booked until October on all our routes - please contact us for Autumn and 2024 dates
If you ask us for a quote we will include public transport or parking information to suit your walking holiday and for those booking we advise and assist in helping you to work out and book the best travel options for your walk.
This route is one of the easiest and quickest to reach by public transport and if you can try to arrive by train and bus as it will save you having to arrange parking and travel back to your car after walking.
Train Arrival - Mainline Trains run from London, Bristol and the Midlands to Taunton and Bridgewater Station taking only 2 to 2.5 hours. Buses run every two hours from Bridgewater straight to Nether Stowey taking around 40 minutes. Taunton Station has some direct buses to Nether Stowey but its often easiest and not expensive to take the train to Taunton and just take a taxi from the station for the last section to Nether Stowey.
Train Departure - From Porlock - buses run into Minehead where you change for Taunton and the mainline train service. Journeys are frequent and take around 1.5 to 2 hours to the mainline station. At Minehead as an option you can change to the West Somerset Steam Railway and depart in style with a one hour journey back through the Quantocks to Taunton - ask for details.
From Lynmouth - Buses run from Lynmouth to Barnstaple Station on the scenic North Devon Branch Line. Its then around 1 hour on this stunning train journey to link to the main London to Penzance train line at Exeter St Davids.
Car - Free long stay parking is available in Nether Stowey and at the other end in Lynmouth there are long stay pay and display car parks. To get back to Nether Stowey and your car at the end of the walk you can use the seasonal tourist bus to Minehead where you change for the Nether Stowey bus. The other option is a private transfer and we can arrange or advise on this - please ask.
Coach Arrival - National Express Coaches run from London with connections from airports and other locations to Bridgwater from where buses run to Nether Stowey taking 40 minutes. You can also arrive at Minehead and Watchet by National Express Coach and link quickly by local bus or taxi to Nether Stowey.
Coach Departure - A short bus ride from Porlock takes you to Minehead from where National Express services run direct to London with connections to other locations around the UK.
From Lynmouth you can take the local bus to Barnstaple and join the National Express services there back to London with airport connections.
Arriving from Overseas - Those arriving from overseas will usually arrive in the UK at London Gatwick or London Heathrow airport from where you can catch direct trains to Bridgwater and Taunton (see the train information above). Those arriving at London Heathrow will usually take a 1/2 hour underground train / overland train service into London Paddington to catch the fast GWR inter city trains to Devon and Cornwall. Bristol and Exeter airports closer to the walk and also have a number of international flights so its worth checking these options as well.
Internal Flights - Bristol International Airport is only around 2 hours travelling time by bus and train from the start of the walk at Nether Stowey and from Exeter train station its only around 1.5 hours to the trail - both via Bridgwater or Taunton.
For all travel advice feel free to ask our Walking Advisors for options and suggestions - routes and options do change so its worth getting up to date advice and options when planning your Coleridge Way Walk - Click Here to contact us
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