What's Dave Doing?

07/04/2026

To finish up my articles about the South West Coast Path, I've just hit publish on this comprehensive guide to what was, as I'm sure you've gathered by now, an incredible walk.

It's a more high-level view than the daily guides I've been writing, with details on things like costs, accommodation, food and drink, and a whole lot more. If you've been at all tempted to walk the path yourself after all the updates and guides I've been sharing for the last few months, you'll want to bookmark this one!

That'll be it for SWCP articles for now: 160,000 words is a lot of writing on one subject! 😄

Everything you need to know about walking the South West Coast Path, a 630+ mile National Trail around the southwest coast of the UK.

01/04/2026

And done!!

It took me seven weeks to walk the South West Coast Path, and five months to write 150,000 words about it! 🙃 Madness, but hopefully worth it for anyone else who wants to tackle this incredible walk.

Make a cup of your favourite beverage, start at day 1, and settle in. The first half of each post is the story of that day's walking, the second half is planning and logistical information for anyone thinking about doing it themselves.

Enjoy!

My detailed guides to walking each day of the South West Coast Path, over 630 miles from Minehead to South Haven Point.

20/02/2026

Week five of the South West Coast Path in the bag! Writing about it, that is.

This week was bookended by some absolutely terrible weather, even if it had plenty of glorious sunshine in the middle. It started just outside Falmouth, where I got the most drenched I've been on any day of this walk, and finished in Plymouth,on a day when 100kmh winds and rain meant ferries weren't running and forced a sudden change of plans!

What's that, you say? Summer is over?

My detailed guides to walking each day of the South West Coast Path, over 630 miles from Minehead to South Haven Point.

16/01/2026

I forgot to post this the other day, but I've now finished writing about my third week on the South West Coast Path. It starts in a gorgeous little village made famous by Martin Clunes, and finishes at the point where my joint walk suddenly became a solo one!

As usual, you can find all of my SWCP guides in one place to save you clicking around. Hope you like them, and if you've got any feedback or comments, let me know!

My detailed guides to walking each day of the South West Coast Path, over 630 miles from Minehead to South Haven Point.

07/12/2025

I've now finished my guides to the second week of the South West Coast Path, starting in the only town in the UK with an exclamation mark in its name and finishing at one of the best pubs I visited on the entire trail.

In between, there were incredible views, unbelievably steep cliffs and valleys, endless sunshine, and the world's blackest toenail.

You can read them, and the rest of the guides, here:

My detailed guides to walking each day of the South West Coast Path, over 630 miles from Minehead to South Haven Point.

02/12/2025

I took a quick break from writing up daily guides to the South West Coast Path to...write a review of the tent Lauren and I used on the South West Coast Path. Really mixing up those topics there, Dave.

Honestly, this lightweight tent is so much better than I expected it to be for the money. It's hundreds of dollars cheaper than the big brand versions, but with a few small caveats, is just as good for our purposes.

Whether we've been hiking for a night or several weeks, or even just driving to a campsite for the weekend, it's served us incredibly well!

After 23 nights under canvas in Naturehike's Cloud Up3 tent, I'm amazed how good it is for the money.

17/11/2025

If you've been missing my daily updates from the South West Coast Path anywhere near as much as I've missed walking it, I've got something for you!

I've decided to take on the ambitious task of writing up daily guides to the path: there'll be 49 of them in the end, part the story of my experiences, part logistical information for anyone thinking about walking that section of the path themselves. We're looking at 100,000 words or more by the time I'm done: that's the size of a good novel!

Rather than sharing each one individually here, I've put together a page where you can find each guide as I write it. The first week is up now, at https://whatsdavedoing.com/south-west-coast-path-guides/, and I'm adding two or three each week.

I'd love to hear your thoughts!

My detailed guides to walking each day of the South West Coast Path, over 630 miles from Minehead to South Haven Point.

01/10/2025

🎉🎉FINAL DAY!!!🎉🎉

Day 49 of the South West Coast Path: Langton Matravers to South Haven Point. 21.5km (13.4 miles), 421m (1380 feet).

I slept terribly overnight for no particular reason, other than perhaps to maintain consistency with the rest of the walk. After grabbing a coffee and breakfast roll from the onsite cafe that opened at 7:30am (what a blessing that was), I set off in the drizzle and gloom for my last day on the South West Coast Path.

The trail was slippery and full of sticky mud - I don't think I've had dirtier shoes at any point on this walk - so I spent most of the morning with my head down, trying to avoid rolling an ankle in the final few hours. The rain came and went all the way to Swanage, where the first hints of blue sky started to appear as I walked along the promenade and out the other side of town.

I'd been getting a bit sad that my photos at the end were going to be of me standing in murky drizzle, but the path wasn't going to be that cruel. As I approached the lovely views over Old Harry Rocks, the sun broke through and the clouds drifted out to sea.

My thru-hiking buddy from the day before caught up with me at this point, and we walked for a little while together before he sped off to meet his family at the finish line. I was in a more reflective mood, ambling along the long, sandy expanse of Knoll Beach as my mind filled with thoughts and memories about the last seven weeks of walking.

Before I knew it, I'd rounded the corner and the large blue marker that signals the eastern end of the coast path at South Haven Point was in sight. My thru-hiking friend was still there with his family, who all gave me a loud cheer as I walked the final few metres up to the marker and enveloped it in a hug.

52 days after setting off from Minehead, through scorching sunshine, pouring rain, and howling gales, powered mostly by coffee, fish and chips, and more breakfast baps than I could possibly count, I'd finished what was easily the longest, hardest, most beautiful, and most rewarding walk I've ever done.

I now understand why people refer to the South West Coast Path as one of the greatest long-distance walks in the world - it truly is. I hope we continue to treasure and care for this remarkable trail, so that generations from now, people can still have all of the joy, pain, and sheer exhilaration I've just been privileged enough to experience.

Thanks for your support and encouragement along the way - it means a lot. For now, I'm off to sleep in a bed, eat some vegetables, and not put one foot in front of the other for a while!

---
Below I've included a few stats from the walk, for anyone who might be interested. They're as measured by my Garmin each day, from when I set out each morning to when I arrived at my accommodation each night.

Total days: 52
Walking days: 49
Official trail distance: 1017.6km (632.3 miles)
Actual distance walked: 1193.5km (741.6 miles)
Official ascent: 35,079m (115,088 feet)
Actual ascent: 38,434m (126,095 feet)
Calories burned: 83,212
Steps taken: 1,543,364

30/09/2025

Day 48 of the South West Coast Path: Durdle Door to Langton Matravers. 32.2km (20 miles), 1380m (4525 feet) ascent.

Well, I said today was going to be a big day, and indeed it was. The stroll down to Lulworth Cove was deceptively easy, and my day improved dramatically when I discovered that the place I thought was only going to be open for coffee turned out to be doing breakfast as well.

Less thrilling was the drizzle that showed up while I was finishing breakfast and never really went away until late afternoon. It was never super wetting, just mildly annoying, but it didn't do much for my photos!

This day's walk was a significant one, mostly because it runs through an army firing range that other than in August, is only open at weekends, and even then, not every weekend. Miss your window, and it's a long, ugly detour that adds an extra day of unpleasant walking to the experience.

As a result, I've been trying for the last two or three weeks to time my walk to get to this section at the right time, and in the end it was no issue at all. Well, until I hit the first hill.

This is the last section of the walk that's marked as 'severe' in my book, and indeed it was. Several long, steep climbs followed by equally long, equally steep descents on now-slippery paths were no joke. I'm pretty sure today's ascent and descent were the most I've done on the entire walk! Throw in closed campsites, and it made for a long, hard day!

Even so, it didn't feel as tough as I expected, undoubtedly helped by the great views from the top of each climb, and also by meeting a fellow thru-hiker (one of the few at this time of year) who I ended up walking with and chatting to for most of the day.

There wasn't really anywhere to stop along the way, so we made good time despite the hills. I'd hoped to stay at a campsite in Worth Matravers, mostly because of the fantastic pub nearby that I visited once a decade ago, but in the end had to carry on a bit further to Langton Matravers instead. I didn't love the 1+ mile uphill walk off-trail to get to the campsite, but at this point it's kind of a case of taking what you can get.

I also didn't love the fact that the one pub in the village wasn't doing food today because the chef was at a charity event, so I had to settle for a couple of pints of cider with some new walking friends and a squashed sandwich from my backpack when I got back to my tent.

You win some, you lose some I guess!

29/09/2025

Day 47 of the South West Coast Path: Wyke Regis to Durdle Door. 24.6km (15.3 miles), 705m (2310 feet) ascent.

Waking up to the sound of a neighing horse a few feet from your head is an unusual alarm call, but I guess that's what you get when your campsite is a working farm with stables!

The first part of the morning was an unexciting walk on tarmac paths for an hour or so into Weymouth, where I was pleasantly surprised by how nice the old harbour area was, and how good my breakfast was at one of the cafes there. I thought Weymouth was known mostly for being a tacky tourist town?

As I came out of the cafe, a toy train drove down the street beside me, and when I turned the corner to the beachfront a minute later, the first things I saw were a ferris wheel and an amusement arcade. Ahhh, there we go.

The beach was massive, but on this overcast and chilly autumn morning, hardly anybody was on it. I'm sure it would have been a very different story a month ago!

Stomping along the promenade took forever and wasn't very exciting, but the views improved a bit once I finally left the pavement and got up onto the low cliffs at the other end of the bay. The path led literally through the garden of the charming old pub in the village of Osmington Mills, which seemed as good a reason as any to stop there for lunch.

The best part of the day by far was the final section, however, from Osmington Mills to Durdle Door. Almost all of the climbing and descending happened in the last hour, with fantastic views of undulating countryside and the famous 'door' (a stone arch in the ocean) that gives this area its name.

Quite why the bay before it is called Scratchy Bottom, however, was slightly less obvious.

My campsite is right at Durdle Door, which made for a slightly shorter day than usual. I need all the help I can get - the first part of tomorrow's walk will be very steep, and it's a long way between campsites, so it's going to be a big day. Wish me luck!

28/09/2025

Day 46 of the South West Coast Path: East Fleet to Wyke Regis via the Isle of Portland. 32.3km (20.1 miles), 520m (1705 feet) ascent.

Today was a bit of an odd one. Not only did I accidentally do my longest distance of the walk so far, but I finished the day only a few km from where I started it!

That's because the vast majority of the day was spent doing a loop around the Isle of Portland, which is barely connected to the mainland. Connected it is, however, so walk it I must. As Yoda would say.

The first couple of hours was spent getting there, finishing off the walk along the Fleet that I did most of yesterday. After a jarring walk over the bridge alongside heavy traffic, I grabbed breakfast at the first place that was open, then spent another half hour walking beside more heavy traffic.

As soon as the path turned away from the road, however, everything changed. That's partially because it went straight up the side of a large hill, but also because it meant great views in several directions. After a diversion through an old quarry and another couple of diversions to avoid landslips, I had a lovely walk all the way to the bottom of the 'island', and the famous Portland Bill lighthouse.

After a brief stop for a drink and a packet of gingernuts (don't ask), I started my walk back up the other side of the island. This side felt much more industrial, with prisons, military bases, disused quarries, and other paraphernalia of the last couple of hundred years.

Even with that, though, there were plenty of pretty parts as I made my way back towards the top of the island. I'd planned to stay at a campsite there, but it looked very closed as I passed. I double-checked and apparently it wasn't, but I would have been the only person staying there and I didn't love the vibe, so I carried on for another hour or so, back over the bridge to a campsite I'd passed on the way in.

It felt a bit strange to see it again, seven hours later, but by that point my feet had no time for my musings. It was definitely time to stop!

27/09/2025

Day 45 of the South West Coast Path: West Bay to East Fleet. 28.1km (17.5 miles), 355m (1165 feet) ascent.

Today was a shorter and much flatter day than yesterday (not exactly difficult), which made it noticeably easier if not noticeably more interesting!

It started with me navigating the maze of static caravans back out of the campsite, as far as the nearest pasty shop for breakfast. Or should I say, first breakfast - today was the first day I channelled my regular approach on the Camino de Santiago and opted for two breakfasts, about an hour apart. I mean, why not?

It had been super cloudy when I woke up, but it quickly blew out to sea and was sunny by the time I'd finished my pasty. After navigating yet another diversion as soon as I set out (shocking news: it went through both a golf course and a caravan park), I climbed one of today's few hills to get a view over what lay ahead.

The shingle of Chesil Beach stretches for something ridiculous like 20 miles, all the way from near Abbotsbury in the west to Weymouth in the east. It's possible to walk it the whole way, if you're a maniac, but it's strongly advised not to. After my 90 minutes or so of slogging it out on the pebbles, sinking in with each step, I had no desire to ever see a stone again.

The route then (thankfully) takes a big inland detour, passing close to Abbotsbury before meandering back towards the coast. That meander wasn't the most inspiring, mostly looking over and walking through farm fields, but hey, at least it wasn't shingle!

The clouds returned later in the day as I strolled alongside the Fleet, the thin lagoon that sits between Chesil Beach and the mainland. It was full of bird life, which probably helps explain why it's a protected area.

It had been a perfectly fine but not especially memorable day, but that all changed when I walked into my chosen campsite for the day. For no particular reason that I could tell, the staff member gave me a pitch for free! I certainly didn't ask for it, but of course I greatly appreciated it!

People have been so nice on this walk - this is just another example!