TWO CONTRASTING WALKS ON THE DORSET COAST

One of the things I have promised myself in 2023 (have you read my goals post?), is to seek out short walks and do them slowly. In this post I want to share two such walks I did recently, a pair of contrasting walks on the Dorset coast.

Sometimes we think we have to be out all day, or push our speed or distance, to enjoy the outdoors. And that’s just not the case. While I love the adventure of lengthy and multi-day hikes (such as the UK coast to coast), such trips are often tainted by the pressure of time and distance.

Meandering along without those burdens fills me with joy, and it is important to create time for that. Getting out for a couple of hours, stopping for a cup of tea along the way, pausing to take in the views and heaps of photos, is all part of the fun of getting outside.

Two Contrasting Walks on the Dorset Coast

I was down on the south coast to have dinner with a group of friends I hadn’t seen for years, and used that trip as an excuse to get my boots on and explore. Basing myself in Weymouth for a couple of nights, I was less than 30 minutes’ drive from each of the two walks I’d earmarked.

The first, taking in Lulworth Cove and Durdle Door, offered the dramatic cliffs, sheer drops, and crashing waves you might imagine of the Jurassic Coast. My there-and-back route gave me steep climbs, natural arches, beautiful rock formations, and pretty coves.

The second, still within the Jurassic Coast Heritage Site, came with much more of a countryside flavour. My circular walk from Abbotsbury provided rolling hills, ancient settlements and all kinds of farmland. And big views of the sea, of course.  

I don’t think I realised quite how contrasting the two walks on the Dorset coast would be when I planned where to head, but it really was the perfect demonstration of how you can get all kinds of things from the English countryside – even without travelling far.

Lulworth Cove and Durdle Door

A quick summary: 5 miles, 2.5 hours (including a cup of tea on the beach), there-and-back, really popular location, not technical underfoot but steep (and muddy) in places. See in OS Maps.

My Walk from Lulworth Cove

I don’t think there is any more iconic view of the Dorset coast than Durdle Door. Back in 2018 I swam under the natural arch at this popular beach on a wild swimming weekend with Wilderness Weekends, and I have visited a couple of times before that. It’s very popular indeed, and with good reason, it is quite simply stunning.

While I might not recommend it as a spot for a quiet Saturday morning wander in midsummer due to the crowds, it is a most excellent place to visit, and it’s possible to experience it without lots of other people if you time it right.

I parked up at the pay and display car park at Lulworth Cove, choosing this one over Durdle Door as it is open 24 hours, rather than being shut up until 9am.

Keep the Sea on the Left

The great thing about walking on the South West Coast Path (or the Wales Coast Path, or England Coast Path, you get me…), is that you can pick a direction and walk until you want to turn around and return the same way. The views will be slightly different in either direction, and you will know exactly how long it will take you to return. Yes, there are often excellent options to create circular walks – and the second one I’m sharing is one of those – but it’s not necessary every time.

I’d studied the map in advance and knew what coastal features I might see, but when it came to navigation on the day my intention was to get to the sea, turn right, and walk for an hour or so. Oh, the joys of walking without needing to check a map! I thought I would get at least far enough to see Bat’s Hole, probably up onto Bat’s Head, and maybe even as far as White Nothe.

Beginning by walking down to Lulworth Cove, I spotted a nice-looking beachside café and vowed to return at the end of my walk for coffee and cake. The tide was in, so I had a very quick look before following the sign to the coast path and to Stair Hole, which is a really cool bit of the cliff worth a look even if you don’t plan on straying far from Lulworth Cove itself.

To Bat’s Head

The coast path went up (up and up) hill to Hambury Tout. The well-maintained path here will certainly get your lungs and legs working, but it’s not far and is well worth the effort.

The views of the rugged rocks jutting out into the sea are stunning all the way along, certainly helped by the lovely weather I had on this Saturday morning at the end of January. From the top, it’s a gentle descent first to The Man o War and then to Durdle Door. In this direction I looked at both from the top, before continuing. It had taken just half an hour to here, and I wasn’t walking quickly.

You can see Bat’s Hole natural arch from a little way off. Not as large as Durdle Door, it’s a pretty little natural arch in the chunky white stone cliff, fronted by a striking and empty-of-people cove.

The Dorset coast is well known for being a little on the undulating side. Coast walking generally is, as you go up onto the cliff top, down to sea level to cross a stream, and back up again. I decided I would tackle the very steep section up to Bat’s Head, which sits above Bat’s Hole. I could easily have not bothered, but I thought the exercise would do me good, and I wanted to see the view from the top. It was steep but the climb was short, and it was absolutely worth my panting.

Tea on the Beach

This high point was my opportunity to turn-around, carefully picking my way down the cliff path and wandering back up again towards Durdle Door. I could have continued on to White Nothe, but I was content with how far I’d walked and wanted to leave plenty of time to visit both Durdle Door and Man o War properly on the return leg, and to get that coffee at Lulworth Cove before I went to meet my friends.

I walked down the steep steps to the beach and sat on my PACMAT in front of the famous natural arch I’d once swam through to drink the flask of tea I’d brought with me. There were a few people about doing the same, enjoying a quiet moment in a fine-looking spot. It really was peaceful sat watching the saves crash on the pebble shoreline, a soundtrack I wish I heard more often.

Eventually, I made my way back up those steps to the top of the cliff (a good workout!), and then down the set just a few metres along the path to The Man o War. Protected by the narrow headland of Durdle Door, this is a lovely, sheltered sand and pebble cove which offers a calmer place to sit and while away some time.

Dorset Apple Cake

My final stop before getting back to Lulworth Cove was to bag the trig pillar at Hambury Tout. Sitting at just 134m, it might not sound like much, but it commands views both in land and out to sea, and was well worth the slight detour from the main path. And a trig is never disappointing. Well, mostly!

By the time I found myself back at Lulworth Cove, more of the beach was visible, so I explored the shoreline for a bit before retreating inside out of the cold for a few minutes. I’d highly recommend The Boat Shed Café right by the sea at Lulworth Cove – the coffee and slice of Dorset Apple Cake was everything I needed after a couple of hours wandering.

A very happy couple of hours spent on some of the most beautifully rugged coast England has to offer. Tell me otherwise if you believe it and I’ll go and see for myself.

Looking to walk this yourself? Here’s my approximate route on OS Maps.

If you don’t have a subscription to OS Maps and you like hiking, I would highly recommend it for route planning and when out and about – I’d really appreciate it if you would use my affiliate link to get started.

Abbotsbury and Chesil Beach

A quick summary: 6.7 miles, < 3 hours, circular route, well-marked and kept footpaths, quiet, not technical but a couple of reasonably significant uphill sections and some muddy bits. See in OS Maps.

Abbotsbury, Dorset

Abbotsbury is a pretty and historic stone-built village close to Weymouth on the Dorset’s coast. Sitting in a secluded valley sheltered by the Ridgeway hills, the village is home to the landmark St Catherine’s Chapel, an Iron Age castle, a Benedictine Abbey (now ruins), a Swannery dating back to the 1300s, and plenty more history. Humans have lived here for over 6,000 years.

It’s also the landscape of Thomas Hardy; the bloke who wrote my A Level English Literature novel, The Return of the Native, so probably the least said about him the better.

I parked up in the village car park on Rodden Row, visited the (free and very clean) public toilets on Back Street (such a surprise to find decent public toilets these days – I wish more towns and villages would keep them), and started my circular walk by heading up a bridleway towards the ridgeline.   

South Dorset Ridgeway

The climb up to the South Dorset Ridgeway was long but steady, with views opening up over the sea and surrounding countryside with each metre ascended. Within a mile of leaving the car, I was already glad I chose this hike. It was quiet, peaceful, I felt like I was somewhere totally different to the previous day, and it was a joy to be out.

Not long before reaching the ridge, the path crossed a series of strip lynchets. A kind of terrace made from earth, lynchets are often found close to Iron Age forts and were used to maximise the use of land for agriculture. Yes, I looked it up, while I was stood on the hillside at the features, because I knew there was a history lesson in what I was looking at. Aren’t phones amazing?!

Abbotsbury Castle

Once up at the top, the route follows the South Dorset Ridgeway west, where the views really open out. What a magnificent place! A bit further along, past the Rideway Beacon and remains of a Second World War gun emplacement, I reached the remains of Iron Age Abbotsbury Castle.

There’s a trig pillar here, standing at 215m above sea level. My photos don’t do the view justice, but I stood for a while enjoying being able to see as far as Torbay in the west and Portland Bill in the east. Looking inland, the view was more about rolling green hills and patchwork fields. Now that’s a big England view!

Tulk’s Hill

After crossing the road, the route entered National Trust’s Tulk’s Hill. The path I needed went straight downhill to the sea following the eastern edge of the site, but I naturally took a wander to see what this site is all about.

The monument is three large bowl barrows around 15m to 18m each in diameter and around two metres high, with trenches around them. Well, there were three – apparently one of them has vanished, but weirder things have happened.

From there I headed through East Bexington Farm and down to sea level, joining up with the South West Coast Path, Hardy Way, and Macmillan Way, which together follow a narrow coastal (and rather flooded on this occasion) lane along Chesil Beach.

Chesil Beach Nature Reserve

A dedicated nature reserve, Chesil Beach is 18-miles long. To be honest, this was not the best mile of the hike; while there were Second World War pillboxes to see, I found it to be messy and strewn with litter. Not the sort of litter I could pick up and take out with me, but the large fly-tipped kind, and the kind I didn’t have the right equipment with me to touch.  

It was much nicer once I reached the car park and toilets (which were open and clean…). But if you want to visit Chesil Beach, I would recommend doing so from Weymouth and Portland – it really is a beautiful and unusual nature reserve.

Passing more strip lynchets, the trail took me up hill to St Catherine’s Chapel, which had been a visible landmark for most of the hike. Managed by English Heritage, this 14th century chapel was built by the monks of Abbotsbury Abbey as a retreat. Isolated and prominent, it was saved from the dissolution thanks to doubling as a daymark for ships sailing along the Dorset coast. You can’t go inside (unless it happens to be open for an occasional service), but it’s a must-see.

A Perfect Local Café

My hike ended back in the village of Abbotsbury where, as it was now lunchtime, I chose to test out one of the local eateries before I jumped in the car and made my way home. If you do this walk, or any from Abbotsbury, I implore you to visit Bellenie’s Bakehouse on Market Street. Clearly loved by locals, I was greeted by the owner Steve, served a great pasty and slice of carrot and passion fruit cake (Nigella Lawson’s recipe, obtained at a very special birthday party, I was told), along with some fun café-wide conversation.

This is the route as plotted by Country Walking Magazine on OS Maps.

More Walks on the Dorset Coast

I think my write-ups of these two short walks are longer than I’d imagined when I planned this post, but it just goes to show that when you walk slowly you have time to notice more.

This pair of contrasting walks would make a lovely day or weekend the next time you are in the Dorset part of the Jurassic coast. Add visits to Portland Bill, Harry Rocks, Studland Bay and Dancing Ledge, and you’ve got yourself a scenery-focused trip.

If you’ve got recommendations for walks on the Dorset coast I should do next time I’m down that way, drop them in the comments.

If you’re reading this later then note I did these two walks at the end of January 2023, and information about parking and route condition is based on my experience on that particular weekend.