Exploring the hills of England & Wales

Category: Coast

  • Beachy Head cliffs

    One of the most iconic views in southern England, Beachy Head is the highest chalk cliff in Britain, rising 162m (531 feet) above the sea. Even those who have never been here might well recognise the cliffs from such films as Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and James Bond: The Living Daylights. What, for me, makes these…

  • Hastings Pier

    Following the passing of the Bank Holidays Act the previous year, the first ever August Bank Holiday took place on 5th August, 1872. And this was the date chosen by Hastings Council to open its first-ever pier. Designed by Eugenius Birch, who had previously designed piers at Margate, Brighton, and Blackpool, the new pier was 910 feet long, and consisted…

  • The Hermitage

    Most walkers on the coast path probably do not take much notice of The Hermitage, nestled some way back from the shore at Welcombe Mouth in Devon.  They are, perhaps, more interested in reaching the border with Cornwall, less than half a mile to the west. Indeed, the Hermitage, situated in the far west of the north Devon coast, is probably…

  • Polridmouth Cove

    Polridmouth Cove is situated a few miles west of Fowey. Pronounced “Pridmuth”, it consists of a small dog-friendly beach, several footpaths, and a small number of buildings. It is usually quiet even in the height of summer. Because the slope of the beach is quite shallow, much of it is hidden at high tide, when…

  • The Mermaid of Zennor

    Why would a mermaid be depicted in a church? It’s not really a Christian symbol, and as far as I’m aware there are no mermaids in the Bible. And yet, in the Church of St Senara, in the village of Zennor in West Cornwall, is a bench with the unmistakable carving of a mermaid. With…

  • Miles Dock

    One of the delights of coastal walking is coming across places that seem, initially, not to be worth a second look; but which turn out, on closer inspection, to have a unique and special history. Such a place is Miles Dock. At first, this small indentation in the riverbank looks as though it could be…

  • Devon’s parliament

    Sometimes, just a word on an Ordnance Survey map can ignite curiosity, especially when that word is written in a fancy Old English font. An example is Parliament, marked on the map a few miles from Brixham, in South Devon. To what “Parliament” does that refer? On the ground, Parliament is made up of a…