I’ll be setting out from Land’s End on 3 June 2018 in the year of my retirement and walking the 287 miles to Lyme Regis in 18 days, averaging 16 miles per day. The shortest day will be from The Lizard to Coverack, just 11 miles, followed immediately by the longest day, from Coverack to Falmouth, over 23 miles. If you’re unfamiliar with coastal walking and think that, being ‘down south’, it must be easier than the hills ‘oop north’, you’re mistaken. The reason I’m stopping at Lyme Regis is because, living in Dorset, I’ve walked all of its coastline, most of it many times over. I’ve used it as a training ground for the Pennine Way, the ultimate test being Lulworth to Swanage, a 20 mile grueller with over 4,000 feet (1,200 metres) of ascent. When you can do that with a full pack on, you know you’re ready. I also walked the 30 miles from Lyme Regis to Weymouth on the hottest day of 2017 but, right now, I have four months in which to get back to that level of fitness.
I’ll be taking a tent, partly as practice for LEJOG, but also because accommodation along the SWCP isn’t necessarily available in precisely the locations I’ll want to stop. I’m very keen on using youth hostels, even though they’re a bit of a misnomer these days since the clientele seems to be, on average, around my age; still, we were youths 50 years ago! It’s a shame that many are under-subscribed because they’re a fantastic resource, being cheap, clean and comfortable, many offering wholesome food and with, best of all, drying rooms. This latter feature alone sets them above hotels and b&bs, enabling you to continue with your challenge having cleaned your skin, warmed your bones, filled your belly and dried your kit. Regrettably, only two of the four YHA establishments on my route are going to be open on the days I’ll be passing through, but you can be sure I’ve already booked myself in at both during the first week.
Liz will join me at the weekends, the first of which we’ll head off-piste for accommodation at YHA accommodation at the Eden Project. Bunkhouses are available in Falmouth and Plymouth, which I’ve also booked, so I’m only looking to camp on two of the first seven nights. The second week I’ll be camping on three nights, including two consecutive nights, hence the need for a power bank to re-charge the phone. The other nights will be spent in B&Bs, all booked, but I’ve done nothing about booking the campsites on the assumption that, outside the school holidays, they’re unlikely to be full. And, if any of them should be, maybe a spot of wild camping would be good practice for LEJOG.
Incidentally, I’ll still be walking on those days at the weekends when Liz and the boys join me – they’ll simply meet me in the afternoons and drive me to the accommodation. I learned on the Pennine Way that, because you get fitter as you go along, there’s no need to incorporate rest days in your itinerary.
SWCP Stages, June 2018
| Sun | 03/06/2018 | Land’s End to Penzance | YHA Castle Horneck, Penzance TR20 8TF Inc packed lunch |
| Mon | 04/06/2018 | Penzance to Porthleven | Out of the Blue Campsite, Mill Lane, Porthleven, TR13 9LQ |
| Tue | 05/06/2018 | Porthleven to The Lizard | YHA The Polbrean, Lizard Point TR12 7NT |
| Wed | 06/06/2018 | The Lizard to Coverack | Ben or Georgia Roskilly
Penmarth Farm Coverack TR12 6SB 01326 280389 |
| Thu | 07/06/2018 | Coverack to Falmouth (river crossings) | Falmouth Lodge, 9 Gyllyngvase Terrace, Falmouth TR11 4DL Tel 01326 319 996 Mob 07525 722 808 |
| Fri | 08/06/2018 | Falmouth to Hemmick Beach | YHA Eden Project |
| Sat | 09/06/2018 | Hemmick Beach to Par | YHA Eden Project |
| Sun | 10/06/2018 | Par to Polperro | Noughts & Crosses Inn, Lansallos Street, Polperro, Cornwall PL13 2QU |
| Mon | 11/06/2018 | Polperro to Whitsand Bay Fort | Whitsand Bay, Millbrook, Torpoint, Cornwall PL10 1JZ 01752 822597 |
| Tue | 12/06/2018 | Whitsand Bay Fort to Plymouth (river crossing) | Plymouth Backpackers Hotel, 102 Union Street PL1 3HL 01752 213 033 07910 857 841 |
| Wed | 13/06/2018 | Plymouth to River Yealm (river crossing), Noss Mayo/Newton Ferrers | Briar Hill Farm Court Road, Newton Ferrers, Plymouth PL8 1AR 01752 872252 |
| Thu | 14/06/2018 | Newton Ferrers to Bigbury-on-Sea (river crossing) | Mount Folly Farm Campsite – Bigbury on Sea 01548 810267 |
| Fri | 15/06/2018 | Bigbury-on-Sea to Gara Rock | Higher Barnfield
140 Fore St, Kingsbridge TQ7 1AX 01548 853332 |
| Sat | 16/06/2018 | Gara Rock to Stoke Fleming | |
| Sun | 17/06/2018 | Stoke Fleming to Brixham | Centry Touring, Gillard Road, Brixham, Devon, TQ5 9EW 01803 856389 |
| Mon | 18/06/2018 | Brixham to Shaldon | Farthings, 102 Ringmore Road, Shaldon, Devon TQ14 0ET |
| Tue | 19/06/2018 | Shaldon to Ladram Bay | Ladram Bay Holiday Park |
| Wed | 20/06/2018 | Ladram Bay to Lyme Regis | Home |
White Acorns 