Around Weymouth and over the Purbeck cliffs past Ringstead and White Nothe to Durdle Door and Lulworth Cove.
Highlights
- Weymouth seafront
- Durdle Door
- Lulworth Cove
Know before you go
- Steep Purbeck switchbacks
Climbs 840 m and descends 842 m, topping out at 165 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.
Around Weymouth and over the Purbeck cliffs past Ringstead and White Nothe to Durdle Door and Lulworth Cove.
Places on this leg with a full history, and free audio guides you can read or hear.
Ferrybridge to Lulworth Cove is 14.6 miles (23.5 km). Allow about 7 h 30 min of walking, before stops.
Stage 50 climbs about 840 m and descends about 842 m, with a high point of about 165 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 moderate. 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 T2 — some steep, rough or uneven ground.
By distance the surface is footpath 74%, track 3%, road & lane 10%, other 13%. 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 scarce. 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.
Highlights on this leg are Weymouth seafront, Durdle Door, Lulworth Cove. It also passes 1 place we cover in depth: Durdle Door & Lulworth Cove. There is 1 free audio guide between them.
Steep Purbeck switchbacks.