Past Teignmouth and the Dawlish sea wall (with an inland diversion) and across the Exe by ferry to Exmouth.
Highlights
- Teignmouth
- Dawlish sea wall & railway
- Exe ferry
Know before you go
- Inland diversion around Dawlish
- Exe ferry needed
Climbs 727 m and descends 817 m, topping out at 124 m and dropping to 0 m. Measured along the mapped route.
What you walk on, by distance (from OpenStreetMap way types).
Four axes rated 1–5 — the single rating above is only the headline.
Past Teignmouth and the Dawlish sea wall (with an inland diversion) and across the Exe by ferry to Exmouth.
This stage depends on 2 crossings. Check times before you set out — most are seasonal or tide-bound, and the inland detour is long.
Places on this leg with a full history, and free audio guides you can read or hear.
Babbacombe to Exmouth is 13.5 miles (21.7 km). Allow about 8 h 24 min of walking, before stops.
Stage 43 climbs about 727 m and descends about 817 m, with a high point of about 124 m. On the South West Coast Path the ascent, not the distance, is what decides how long a day takes — the route repeatedly drops to sea level and climbs straight back out.
It is graded hard. Rated out of five: physical demand 4/5 (High), terrain 3/5 (Moderate), navigation 2/5 (Modest), remoteness 2/5 (Modest). On the SAC hiking scale it is T1 — mostly well-made path, falling is largely unlikely.
By distance the surface is footpath 63%, track 1%, road & lane 13%, other 23%. Percentages come from the mapped way types along the route.
March to October is the usual window for this leg. Outside it, daylight is short, some estuary ferries stop running and cliff-top wind and rain make an exposed route much harder work.
Water on this stage is moderate. We map 6 refill points on the leg — mostly pubs, cafés and taps in the villages the path passes through. Shade is minimal: this is open cliff-top walking, so carry more than you think in summer.
Yes — Teign ferry (Shaldon–Teignmouth), Starcross–Exmouth ferry. Long-established year-round on-demand ferry across the mouth of the Teign. Seasonal ferry across the Exe (approx late Mar–Oct); off-season uses the train via Exeter.
Highlights on this leg are Teignmouth, Dawlish sea wall & railway, Exe ferry. It also passes 1 place we cover in depth: Exmouth & the Exe Estuary. There is 1 free audio guide between them.
Inland diversion around Dawlish. Exe ferry needed.