Historical Sites Along the South West Coast Path

The official start of the South West Coast Path stands on Minehead's seafront: a striking pair of giant steel hands holding an unfurling map

Hidden in a wooded combe above the sea on the remote Exmoor coast, tiny Culbone Church (St Beuno's) is reputed to be the smallest complete p

Just west of Lynton, the Valley of Rocks is one of Exmoor's most celebrated landscapes: a dry, U-shaped valley running parallel to the sea,

Ilfracombe is North Devon's principal harbour town, a Victorian resort wrapped around a sheltered medieval haven. On the pier stands 'Verity

Braunton Burrows is the largest sand-dune system in England, a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve core area stretching behind the great beach of Saunt

Appledore is a historic North Devon fishing and shipbuilding village at the meeting of the Taw and Torridge estuaries, its narrow cobbled st

Clovelly is one of the most famous villages in England: a single steep cobbled street of flower-decked cottages tumbling 400 feet down a woo

Hartland Quay is a dramatic spot on one of the wildest stretches of the English coast, where spectacularly folded and contorted rock strata

Tintagel Castle stands on a wild, near-island headland on the north Cornish coast, its ruined walls split between the mainland and a rocky p

In the centre of Tintagel village stands the Old Post Office, a remarkable 14th-century stone yeoman's house with a wonderfully undulating s

Padstow is a bustling harbour town on the Camel estuary, an ancient port with origins linked to the Celtic saint Petroc, now famous for its

Port Isaac is a picture-perfect Cornish fishing village of whitewashed cottages crammed around a tiny tidal harbour, its steep lanes (includ

Bedruthan Steps is one of north Cornwall's most dramatic stretches of coast: a series of massive rock stacks rising from a wide beach beneat

The cliffs around St Agnes Head hold some of the most iconic remains of Cornwall's tin- and copper-mining past - now part of the Cornwall an

Godrevy Lighthouse stands on a small rocky island off Godrevy Head at the eastern end of St Ives Bay, a slender white tower built in 1859 to

St Ives is one of Cornwall's loveliest towns, a former pilchard-fishing port whose extraordinary light drew generations of artists, making i

At Pendeen, on the wild Penwith coast, lies Geevor Tin Mine, one of the last great Cornish tin mines, which worked until 1990 and is now a p

The Crowns engine houses at Botallack cling impossibly to the cliff face above the Atlantic - perhaps the most dramatic image of Cornish min

Cape Cornwall is the only headland in England and Wales called a 'cape', the point where Atlantic currents divide. A stone chimney crowns it

Land's End is the most westerly point of mainland England, a granite headland facing the Atlantic with the Longships Lighthouse offshore and

Carved into the granite cliffs above the turquoise sea, the Minack Theatre is one of the world's most spectacular open-air theatres, created

Rising from the sea off Marazion, St Michael's Mount is a tidal island crowned by a medieval castle and church, reached by a causeway at low

Lizard Point is the most southerly point of mainland Britain, a rugged headland of distinctive serpentine rock washed by powerful tides. Its

On the wooded northern shore of the Helford river lie two of Cornwall's great subtropical gardens, Trebah and neighbouring Glendurgan, ravin

At the tip of the quiet Roseland peninsula, St Anthony Head guards the entrance to Falmouth's great natural harbour, the Carrick Roads. Its

Charlestown is a remarkably preserved late-Georgian harbour, purpose-built between 1791 and 1801 by the local landowner Charles Rashleigh (w

Fowey is a historic and prosperous harbour town climbing the steep western shore of the Fowey estuary, long a port of importance - its medie

Looe is a busy twin town (East and West Looe) straddling the mouth of the Looe river, joined by a many-arched bridge, with a working fishing

On the dramatic conical headland of Rame Head, guarding the western approach to Plymouth Sound, stands a tiny ruined medieval chapel dedicat

Plymouth is one of England's great historic ports, and its waterfront is rich in maritime history. On Plymouth Hoe - where Sir Francis Drake

Off the beach at Bigbury-on-Sea lies Burgh Island, a small tidal island reached on foot at low tide or by a unique high-wheeled 'sea tractor

Salcombe is South Devon's most fashionable sailing resort, a town of pastel houses climbing the steep western shore of the beautiful Kingsbr

Dartmouth is a beautiful and historic naval town on the steep wooded shores of the Dart estuary, long a major port from which fleets sailed

Between the sea and the freshwater lagoon of Slapton Ley runs Slapton Sands, a long shingle beach backed by Devon's largest natural freshwat

Berry Head, the great limestone headland sheltering Brixham harbour, is a national nature reserve crowned by well-preserved Napoleonic forts

Exmouth, one of Devon's oldest seaside resorts, sits at the mouth of the Exe estuary, where the South West Coast Path crosses by ferry. The

The pretty fishing village of Beer, with its boats drawn up on the shingle beneath white chalk cliffs, has been famous for two trades: fishi

Lyme Regis, the 'Pearl of Dorset', is a charming old town and harbour at the heart of the Jurassic Coast, world-famous for its fossils. Its

The honey-coloured stone village of Abbotsbury, near the western end of Chesil Beach, grew up around a Benedictine abbey founded in the 11th

Golden Cap, rising 191 metres (627 ft) above the sea between Charmouth and Seatown, is the highest point on the entire south coast of Englan

The Isle of Portland is a great tilted slab of limestone jutting into the Channel, joined to the mainland by Chesil Beach. At its southern t

Among the most famous landmarks on the whole coast, Durdle Door is a spectacular natural limestone arch standing in the sea, while nearby Lu

On the wild, flat-topped headland of St Aldhelm's Head (also called St Alban's Head) stands a remarkable little Norman chapel, a squat, squa

Tyneham is a poignant 'ghost village' in a remote Purbeck valley within the Lulworth military ranges. In December 1943 its entire population

Though a little inland, the dramatic ruins of Corfe Castle dominate the Isle of Purbeck and are an essential heritage stop near the final st

Old Harry Rocks are a line of gleaming white chalk stacks and a stump at Handfast Point, marking the easternmost end of the Jurassic Coast W

South Haven Point, at the mouth of Poole Harbour beside the Sandbanks chain ferry, is the eastern end of the South West Coast Path. A finger