OpenFell
National Trail · England

South West Coast Path

1,036 km (644 miles), in England, through 1 national park.

Data compiled by Ryan — sources and method

Map of the South West Coast PathThe South West Coast Path runs 1036 kilometres through England, passing through Exmoor.WestEast100 km
Route from OpenStreetMap (ODbL). Coastline, borders and national park boundaries from the Office for National Statistics (OGL v3.0). Summits from the Database of British & Irish Hills (CC BY 4.0).
Distance
1,035.8 km
In miles
643.6 mi
Day stages
49 at ~20 km
Typical trip
38–52 days
Countries
England
National parks
1
Listed summits within 2.5 km
0
Western end
SS 9716 4678
Eastern end
SZ 0371 8704
Within 1.5 km of the coast
90% of the line
Managed by
National Trails
National Trail

A National Trail of England and Wales — one of the long-distance routes designated under the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949, waymarked with the acorn symbol and maintained to a national standard.

How long it really is

We measure South West Coast Path at 1,035.8 km (643.6 miles), computed by walking the OpenStreetMap route geometry point by point across the 52 relations the route is mapped in.

No ascent in this figure

This is horizontal distance only. Our trail dataset carries no elevation profile, so we will not quote a total climb or a confident walking time — on hill routes ascent can add hours a day. A flat-ground pace gives roughly 250 h 07 min of walking for the whole route, which is a floor, not an estimate. Add your own ascent figure in the walking-time calculator for something usable.

Access rights along the way

The route stays within England, so one access regime applies along its length.

England

Conditional Right to roam: Right to roam only on mapped CRoW open access land.

Conditional Wild camping: Permission needed — except on the Dartmoor commons.

Full access rules for England

A waymarked route is a route you may walk — it does not follow that you may camp beside it, leave it, or take a dog on it. Long-distance paths cross farmland, estates and access land in turn, and byelaws and seasonal restrictions override the general position. This is general information, not legal advice. Check a specific spot with the access checker.

National parks on the route

The line passes through one national park, each with its own byelaws and camping position.

The route in day stages

South West Coast Path cut into 49 stages of roughly 20 km, measured along the line itself. These are equal-distance splits computed from the geometry, not an official itinerary — they will not always land on a village, a bunkhouse or a station, and the real day you walk should be set by where you can sleep.

Day stages of the South West Coast Path at roughly 20 km each
StageDistanceCumulativeStarts nearEnds nearFlat-ground time
120 km20 kmSS 9716 4678SS 8249 48094 h 24 min
220.1 km40.2 kmSS 8249 4809SS 6768 48794 h 25 min
320.1 km60.2 kmSS 6768 4879SS 5394 48004 h 25 min
421.2 km81.4 kmSS 5394 4800SS 4284 40764 h 40 min
520 km101.4 kmSS 4284 4076SS 5095 34844 h 24 min
620.1 km121.6 kmSS 5095 3484SS 4581 26774 h 25 min
720.6 km142.2 kmSS 4581 2677SS 3823 24304 h 32 min
820 km162.2 kmSS 3823 2430SS 2365 27664 h 24 min
920.3 km182.5 kmSS 2365 2766SS 1969 12724 h 28 min
1020 km202.5 kmSS 1969 1272SX 1562 98184 h 24 min
1120.1 km222.6 kmSX 1562 9818SX 0521 89084 h 25 min
1220.2 km242.7 kmSX 0521 8908SW 9595 79904 h 27 min
1320.2 km263 kmSW 9595 7990SW 8924 76374 h 27 min
1420.1 km283 kmSW 8924 7637SW 8461 67344 h 25 min
1520 km303 kmSW 8461 6734SW 7788 60754 h 24 min
1620 km323 kmSW 7788 6075SW 6998 50794 h 24 min
1720 km343 kmSW 6998 5079SW 5827 42544 h 24 min
1820.1 km363.2 kmSW 5827 4254SW 4979 41124 h 25 min
1920.3 km383.4 kmSW 4979 4112SW 3632 33584 h 28 min
2020 km403.4 kmSW 3632 3358SW 3842 21874 h 24 min
2121 km424.4 kmSW 3842 2187SW 5034 31284 h 37 min
2220 km444.4 kmSW 5034 3128SW 6400 24424 h 24 min
2320.1 km464.5 kmSW 6400 2442SW 7059 11784 h 25 min
2420.3 km484.8 kmSW 7059 1178SW 8046 21694 h 28 min
2520 km504.9 kmSW 8046 2169SW 7964 27814 h 24 min
2620.2 km525.1 kmSW 7964 2781SW 8530 31234 h 27 min
2720.1 km545.2 kmSW 8530 3123SW 9567 41074 h 25 min
2820.5 km565.7 kmSW 9567 4107SX 0300 47814 h 31 min
2920.1 km585.8 kmSX 0300 4781SX 1162 50874 h 25 min
3020.2 km606 kmSX 1162 5087SX 2538 53204 h 27 min
3120.2 km626.2 kmSX 2538 5320SX 4144 50694 h 27 min
3220.1 km646.3 kmSX 4144 5069SX 4958 53514 h 25 min
3320.2 km666.5 kmSX 4958 5351SX 5252 47074 h 27 min
3420.2 km686.8 kmSX 5252 4707SX 6636 44434 h 27 min
3520.1 km706.9 kmSX 6636 4443SX 7388 38074 h 25 min
3620.7 km727.6 kmSX 7388 3807SX 8286 44294 h 33 min
3720.1 km747.7 kmSX 8286 4429SX 9222 51664 h 25 min
3820.5 km768.3 kmSX 9222 5166SX 9072 63394 h 31 min
3920.4 km788.6 kmSX 9072 6339SX 9530 74284 h 29 min
4020.5 km809.1 kmSX 9530 7428SY 0524 81414 h 31 min
4120.2 km829.3 kmSY 0524 8141SY 1895 88124 h 27 min
4220.3 km849.6 kmSY 1895 8812SY 3454 93084 h 28 min
4320.6 km870.2 kmSY 3454 9308SY 5090 87944 h 32 min
4420.1 km890.3 kmSY 5090 8794SY 6440 78514 h 25 min
4520.2 km910.5 kmSY 6440 7851SY 7010 72694 h 27 min
4620 km930.5 kmSY 7010 7269SY 7585 81674 h 24 min
4720.1 km950.6 kmSY 7585 8167SY 9087 78674 h 25 min
4820.2 km970.8 kmSY 9087 7867SZ 0320 78754 h 27 min
4912.4 km983.2 kmSZ 0320 7875SZ 0371 87032 h 44 min

Positions are 8-figure (100 m) OS grid references for points on the line, computed from WGS84 coordinates. Flat-ground times are Naismith at 5 km/h with a 6 min/hour rest allowance and no ascent — add the climb in the walking-time calculator before you plan around them.

Conditions on the route

Weather at the route midpoint live

Loading forecast for the midpoint of the route…

Forecast for the midpoint of the South West Coast Path, at MET Norway's own ground level — we hold no elevation profile for this route, so nothing here is altitude-adjusted, and conditions vary considerably end to end on a route this long. Weather data from MET Norway (CC BY 4.0).

Daylight at the midpoint today

Sunrise
—
Sunset
—
Daylight
—
Civil twilight ends
—

Computed astronomically for 50.005, -5.164. Set a turnaround with the daylight safety planner.

Plan this walk

Other long-distance paths nearby

Sources for this route

  • Route geometry, name, waymark and operator: OpenStreetMap relation 2375770 and 51 further relations making up the route — © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.
  • Distance, stages, country crossings, park crossings and summit proximity: computed by OpenFell from that geometry.
  • Boundaries: Office for National Statistics (OGL v3.0). Summits: Database of British & Irish Hills v18.3 (CC BY 4.0).
  • Official route website: wiki.openstreetmap.org

OpenStreetMap data is licensed under the Open Database Licence. Our derived trail measurements are published under the same terms — see data sources.