Minehead & Beyond

We were dropped by the map shaped sculpture, which marks the start of the South West Coast Path, by Anya’s parents. “630 miles – 1014km” it reads. Quite a distance we’d set ourselves up for, will we be up for the challenge?

And then we set off. The first section to Porlock Weir we’d walked before the previous January. The path was a lot muddier back then, and after the summer’s dry spell is much drier under foot today. The walking is relatively easy going, and the hill climbs up to the top of the headland. We avoid the path signposted as the “Rugged South West Coast Path”. We took this option earlier in the year and it’s much more undulating and the path is not as well made.

Making our way down to Bossington, we cross over the tidal salt marsh, towards Porlock Weir. The stone beach was breached here during a storm in the 1990s, and the fresh water marsh was turned into a salt water one overnight.

After a brief stop in Porlock Weir we headed on, climbing into the wooded hills above. The woods were much more sheltered, with frequent glimpses of the sea and the Welsh Coast across the Bristol Channel.

After about 7km we found ourselves a small patch of flat ground in the woods. This would be our camp for the night. After some dinner, and with little else to do, we turned in for the night. At only 7pm.