Isle of Wight Coastal Path

Infobox Hiking trail
Name=Isle of Wight Coastal Path
Photo=IWCoastPathSignSandown.jpg
Caption=One of the newer signs for the Coast Path
Location=Isle of Wight, England
Length=67 miles (107 km)
Start/End Points= Circular walk, accessible by bus or train at many points
Use=Dog Walking, Hiking, Running
ElevChange=
HighPoint=
LowPoint=
Difficulty=Easy: A few significant hills, varied surfaces
Season=All year
Months=
Sights=
Hazards=

The Isle of Wight Coastal Path (or Coastal Footpath) is a circular long-distance footpath of 67 miles (107 km) around the Isle of Wight, England. It follows public footpaths and minor lanes, with a some sections along roads.

History

Route

The path is waymarked in both directions and can be started at any point, but is described here clockwise from the pier at Ryde (gbmapping|SZ594929).

Ryde to Sandown

Ryde to Bembridge

Bembridge to Sandown

Sandown to Ventnor

Sandown to Shanklin

Shanklin to Ventnor

Ventnor to Freshwater Bay

Ventnor to Blackgang

Blackgang to Brook

Brook to Freshwater Bay

Freshwater Bay to Yarmouth

Freshwater Bay to Needles New Battery

Needles New Battery to Totland

Totland to Yarmouth

Yarmouth to East Cowes

Yarmouth to Newtown

Newtown to Gurnard

Gurnard to East Cowes

East Cowes to Ryde

East Cowes to Wooton

A lot of walking on roads for this section and not very coastal due to the land by the sea being in private ownership.

Wooton to Ryde

Walking on roads until the outskirts of Fishbourne, then along a track past Quarr Abbey and Ryde Golf Course, then roads into Ryde.

This could not be written up any better than in the document below:-

[http://www.redfunnel.co.uk/redfunnel/walking/pdfs/RydetoCowes.pdf Description of Cowes to Ryde IOW coastal path]

Practical aspects

As the route is circular one can join it at any point with the intention of completing the entire distance. However, many peopleSpecify|date=May 2008 will complete a shorter distance, either walking to a destination and back (possibly using an alternative route to return) or using public transport to complete the round trip.

The route is easily accessible by public transport as Ryde and Yarmouth Bus Stations are on the route and many bus routes (operated by Southern Vectis and Wightbus) stop on or near the route. Ferry services from the UK mainland arrive at Yarmouth, Cowes, East Cowes, Fishbourne and Ryde, all of which are on the route. Additionally, Ryde Esplanade and Lake railway stations are on the path, with Shanklin and Sandown stations less than 750m away.

There are some sections, notably along the section from Blackgang to Brook, where public transport is very limited, and so it may be preferable to use a car to access this section. For this purpose, small public car parks are located along the nearby Military Road, most of which are free. Typically in other locations, car parking on the route is within an urban or semi-urban area and a fee is charged.

The Ordnance Survey maps covering the route are:
* Landranger 1:50,000 sheet 196
* Explorer 1:25,000 sheet OL29 "Isle of Wight"Both these publications cover the entire route length, although the "Explorer" is to be preferred due to its greater detail.

The route is mostly waymarked with signs including a seagull symbol and the words "Coastal Footpath" (or similar), although some older signs do not have the seagull. Additionally, some signs include the next destination or pair of destinations on the route, often with the distance in miles.

References

External links

* [http://www.iwight.com/just_visiting/getting_around/walking.asp Isle of Wight Council website] with some information on the route
* [http://www.mortiboy.co.uk/iow/isleof.htm Phil Mortiboy's thoughts on the path]
* [http://www.wight-cam.co.uk/WightCAM/HTML/CoastalWalk.htm WightCam's guide to the path]
* [http://www.iwpaths.co.uk/coast_path/ Paths of the Isle of Wight]