Had the bright idea that we might be able to offload the children to relatives and get away for two days and a night at a time, allowing us to wander along the coast, eat, drink, and be merry, like independent adults (and where it starts in Dorset is relatively close to said relatives).
Thinking we’d leave the car at the mid-way accommodation, use public transport (or taxis if nothing else) to get us to the start, walk for a day, stay overnight, then walk another day and get the bus/etc back to our car. I don’t think this is a completely stupid idea but I’m sure it might seem it to anyone without small children or more people they can leave them with…
Going backwards, the recommended first leg is South Haven Point to Worth Matravers and then the next to Lulworth, so staying in Worth Matravers. Most people walk it the other way (prevailing winds?) so I’m tempted to walk the usual way but doing the last two legs first, if that makes sense?
Any advice?
We met a couple in Devon one year who had spent several years doing something similar over a few years of holidays and weekends.
For finding bus options Traveling is your friend. Once you have a bus number it's sometimes easier to modify your plan to fit a bus route than wait hours between rural buses.
A lot of coast has bises along it although my first look at your Dorset route suggests that bit may be less simple.
Enjoy planning and walking.
We’re currently ticking off bits of the coast path. The reality of access/limited public transport etc means that we’re doing most of it as out and back walks. So, by the time we’re done we’ll have done most of it twice. Doing most with our son means it’s a long term project.
We did a week this summer (with kids and dog). We chose the lizard section, so that we could cut across the narrow northern section to pick the car back up at the end. Pre-booked a mixture of B&Bs , hotels and pubs, all of which were great in their own individual way. It goes down as one of the most enjoyable holidays we've ever done, albeit not cheap when you add up the hotel / meal costs. We're planning to do another week next year, probably picking up when we finished in Falmouth.
We've done a lot of it in the last few years.
Sidmouth to Seaton 13miles bus return
Budleigh Salterton to Sidmouth 12m bus return
Exmouth to Budleigh to Lympstone loop 16m
Anywhere from Exmouth to Torquay is very well served by train.
Exmouth to Exeter 10m (10 pubs to celebrate my walking buddy getting the all clear from prostate cancer)
Paignton to Teignmouth 13m
Torquay to Starcross 14m
Dawlish Warren to Newton Abbot 12m
Steam train from Paignton to Kingswear walk back 16m
Paignton Brixham Paignton loop 14m
Saltash to Plymouth Hoe 9m bus
Plymstock Bovisand Wembury loop 14m
On the north coast
Minehead to watchet & back 13m
Park at County gate & walk to Lynmouth or Minehead & get the open top bus back
Lynmouth to Combe Martin (done with two cars)
Ilfrcombe to CM & back 13m
Croyde to Ilfracombe bus Via Braunton
Croyde to Braunton bus
Braunton to Bideford uses the old railway line Tarka trail - easy walking but a bit flat & dull.
Clovelly to Bideford 15m bus
Boscastle to Bude 26m bus
Boscastle to Port Isaac 27m bus
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Once you get into South Devon proper, while buses are available, pick-up points are some way from main roads, however, accommodation is available so booking a b’n’b overnight shouldn’t be an issue. The stretch around Start Bay, for example, has Dartmouth, Blackpool Sands, Tor Cross at the end of Slapton Sands, there’s the Cricket Inn in Beesands, which I have personal experience of, the rooms are excellent and the food is outstanding, then it’s pretty easy to get to Salcombe around the corner from Start Point, with a nice pub in East Prawle. Just past Lannacombe Bay the path takes you round the back of a house owned by Kate Bush as well. There’s a small ferry that takes you from East Portlemouth across the harbour to Salcombe. Hallsands is an interesting little place with what’s left of the original village clinging to the original rock shelf.
Here’s Start Bay on a nice sunny day, from the car park above Start Point lighthouse, which is open to visitors during the summer, up to the end of September.
I amended the above post, but for some reason the site decided to play silly buggers and wouldn’t show it, and kept logging me out! 🤬
Anyway the white buildings on the left are Hallsands, the next beach along, past the dark trees is Beesands, then just beyond that is Slapton Sands, which is the location of a huge loss of life after German E-Boats chanced on a practice for the D-Day landings, and sank quite a few landing craft, with over 700 casualties. Blackpool Sands is above the while sailing boat out in the bay, and the entrance to Dartmouth Harbour is just to the right of that.
