Any Bournemouth people?

[i4got]

Walking a coastal path next week from Wareham down to Swanage and through to Lymington. Was hoping to stick to the shore where possible but looks like the Mudeford ferry is not running. I assume this means no crossing at that point is possible and I'll need to turn inland and go through Christchurch?

Thanks.

[i4got]

joropug said:

Yes if the ferry is not running it's a totally different route you'll need, however Hengistbury Head is a really nice place for a walk and I'd recommend doing it anyway. I'd follow the coast from Bournemouth then head uphill (will be obvious), follow the cliff and then aim for the beach huts. You can then walk back along the land train road, there are some nice walking routes then to Wick, eventually you'll cross the river on Tuckton Bridge.

How many days are you walking for? That is a long old walk!

Thanks for that - good tip - I'll add in the bit to Hengistbury Head.

It's a 4 day walk so nothing too excessive per day. Train to Wareham. Walk to Swanage via Corfe Castle. Stay in Swanage. Walk to central Bournemouth on day 2 and overnight there. Then onto Highcliffe area on day 3. Then round to Lymington day 4 and train home from there.

Got a walking holiday in Portugal in less than 4 weeks so thought I'd better gets some practice in.

[i4got]

Bill said:

Which way are you going from Wareham to Corfe Castle?

I don't know the area that well but found this on the internet which looks ok.

[i4got]

That does look tempting although it seems to bypass the bit you mentioned that seemed most interesting to me - the pub in Worth.

I'll make a call on the day - it definitely looks a more challenging option.

[i4got]

Bill said:

How did this go??

It went really well.

Due to time constraints I got the bus from Wareham to Corfe Castle after a quick beer in the Horse & Groom. Then I climbed up to the ridge and headed south taking in the views in sunshine. Unfortunately the heavens opened. Got absolutely saturated. Then I had a surprising amount of trouble finding the way off the ridge and into Swanage.

The walk around the headland the next day was great and quiet. Surprised to see such an amount of woodland around Harrys Rocks. Then a long sandy walk along the beach to the ferry.

I was pleasantly surprised by the Bournemouth to Southbourne section. Because of the cliffs you get sheltered from the worst excesses of the town and due to the time of the year it was pretty quiet.

The big downside was the absence of the Mudeford ferry. It would have been a perfect walk except for having to backtrack. The bits of Christchurch I walked through were pretty pleasant though - down by the Norman Priory.

Stayed in Highcliffe overnight then got back to the coast at Barton on Sea. The coastal path from there to Milford is a real highlight.

Finished up with a few miles along sea walls and what looked like levels into a sunny Lymington.

I'd recommend the walk pretty highly but I'd wait until Mudeford ferry is back in service.

Next time I'm in the area I'lll think about starting at Swanage (nice little town) and heading west.

Cheers for the advice.