Why short stages work best

The South West Coast Path stretches for 630 miles from Minehead in Somerset to Poole Harbour in Dorset, taking in the high cliffs of Exmoor, the granite edge of Cornwall, the wooded estuaries of South Devon and the crumbling, fossil-rich Jurassic Coast. Walking it end to end is a months-long undertaking that few of us can fit around work, family and the weather. Walking it in short daily stages, however, is something almost anyone can manage — a string of single days that add up, over a few seasons, to something quietly magnificent.

The trick is to treat each day as a complete little journey with a beginning, a middle and a rewarding end, rather than as a fragment of a much bigger route. Do that, and half an hour of planning buys you six or eight miles of clifftop, a couple of hours mooching around a harbour town, and a pint you have genuinely earned.

Choosing your stretch and pacing the miles

Official guidebooks divide the route into sections, but you are free to slice across them however you like. As a rule of thumb, most walkers average around two miles an hour on this terrain — the gradients are relentless, and a coastal mile with four hundred feet of up and down is nothing like a mile on the flat.

• Six to eight miles makes a comfortable half-day with time to stop for lunch.
• Eight to eleven miles is a full day for anyone reasonably fit and used to hills.
• More than 1,500 feet of ascent deserves to be treated as a longer walk than the mileage suggests.
• Shorten the day if it includes an estuary crossing or a tidal beach — you may have to wait for the water to drop.

North Cornwall and the Exmoor coast deliver the biggest climbs and the most exposed walking. The Roseland peninsula and the gentler stretches around the South Hams are kinder on the legs and easier to squeeze into a weekend.

Getting there and back again

Transport is the single biggest hurdle, and it is more solvable than most people assume. The south-west has a surprisingly useful web of branch lines and seasonal buses that were built for exactly this kind of day out.

The St Ives Bay Line, the Looe Valley Line and the Tarka Line all put you within a short walk of the coastal path, and summer buses link most of the larger villages and coves. Foot ferries across the Camel, the Fal and the Yealm save you miles of dull inland detour and are a pleasure in their own right.

Where you can, park at your finishing point in the morning, then bus or train back to the start — that way you are walking towards the car rather than away from it. Winter timetables thin out considerably, so check the service runs before you commit, and keep a little cash for fares and honesty boxes. If the only realistic option is a taxi, book it before you set off rather than hoping for signal on a headland.

Tides, weather and staying safe

Several stretches cross sand, shingle or estuary, and those are the days when a tide table matters as much as your map. The Erme and Avon estuaries in South Devon, the Gannel near Newquay and the Hayle estuary in Cornwall all demand low water; miss the window and you are looking at a very long walk around, or a very cold wait.

Check the forecast the night before and again over breakfast, because coastal weather turns quickly. Sea fog can swallow a headland in minutes, and a brisk south-westerly on an exposed cliff feels far colder than the valley temperature suggests. Carry a paper map and compass, tell someone your route and expected finish time, and take more water than you think you need — the combes and coves where you would most like a shop rarely have one. Mobile signal is patchy, so download offline maps in advance. In an emergency, dial 999 and ask for the Coastguard.

Ending well: harbours, pints and a bed

Half the pleasure of a staged walk is the destination. The best days finish somewhere with a harbour wall, a bench facing the water and a proper place to sit down indoors.

Village inns along the route have long understood what walkers want: somewhere to leave muddy boots, a fire in the colder months, and food served beyond the usual lunch slot. Portions tend to be generous and local ale is taken seriously. In summer, book a table in advance — the best places fill up by early evening, and Sunday roasts have a habit of running out by two. Many pubs will happily call you a taxi or point you towards a bus stop, and a few still keep rooms upstairs, which makes the whole day far more relaxed. If you are walking a run of consecutive days, a luggage transfer service between overnight stops can turn a hard week into a civilised one.

Small habits for a happier day out

• Start earlier than feels necessary. Morning light on the cliffs is glorious and you will have the path largely to yourself.
• Break the day in the middle, not at the end. A flask and a pasty on a headland beats a rushed pub lunch every time.
• Wear boots you have already broken in and carry a light waterproof, whatever the forecast says.
• Walk the direction that keeps the sea on your best side — and, where you have the choice, keep the wind behind you.
• Note the bus stops and pub closing times as you pass them. They are the details you will want at four o'clock.

Do it this way — one well-chosen stage at a time — and the Coast Path stops being an intimidating 630-mile ambition and becomes a series of splendid days out, each one finishing with sore legs, salt air in your hair and a story worth retelling.