SEVEN BLISSFUL STOPS ALONG THE SOUTH WEST COAST PATH
1 THE EXMOOR CLIFFS, DEVON
From deep combes to sheer, exposed cliffs, this exhilarating rollercoaster takes you on a walk with the gulls through the ozone air.
2 HARTLAND POINT, DEVON
An eddying, crashing collision of currents and tectonic plates meet in a breathtaking fizz of sea-spray. The great little shack café is an oasis: thepointhartland.co.uk
3 THE RUMPS, NEAR POLZEATH, CORNWALL
The earthworks of an ancient hill fort cover a finger of earth and rock that pushes out to sea.
4 PENDOWER COVE, NEAR LAND’S END
A mile or so south of Land’s End, this tiny cove catches immense Atlantic rollers, shedding fish and seaweed as they explode in.
5 GILLAN CREEK, NEAR HELFORD, LIZARD PENINSULA
A tranquil, syrup-smooth reminder of summers long gone. Chug across the warm languid water in a tiny wooden boat, with the ferryman’s dog at the helm.
6 FLEET LAGOON, NEAR WEYMOUTH, DORSET
Hidden behind the shingle bank of Chesil Beach is a quiet, calm world of fishermen, swans and unsurpassed tranquillity. Moonfleet made real in the stillness of evening.
7 OLD HARRY ROCKS, NEAR STUDLAND, DORSET
Just a few miles from the end (or start) of the South West Coast Path at South Haven Point lie these stunning, white-chalk formations, like huge waymarkers of what has been… or what’s to come.