Widemouth to Bude

1. Start from Widemouth Bay car park and take the coast path which runs from the right-hand side of the beach

Whilst much of rock along the Tintagel and Boscastle coast is slate, the rocks around Bude are sandstones and shales. Where the softer upended rock layers have been eroded by the sea, series of ridges have been formed such as at the sides of the beaches at Widemouth and Sandymouth creating many rockpools.

2. Follow the path past Salthouse cottage (which was a salt store in the 18th Century) ignoring the tracks leading inland to the right
3. Follow the coast path past the headlands of Lower Longbeak and Higher Longbeak and through Phillip's Point nature reserve.
Phillips Point (Cornwall Wildlife Trust) is a small reserve off the Widemouth to Bude coast road with magnificent vertical and slumping high cliffs with spectacular views to Hartland Point and Widemouth. A good spot for seals.
4. Near the houses in Upton the path bends to the left. Follow the waymarked path to a kissing gate and across the fields.
5. The past ascends Efford Down to Efford Beacon and continues to the watch tower at Compass Point known as "The Pepper Pot".

The summit at Compass Point is an excellent viewpoint from which you can see Trevose Head to the South (and its lighthouse in the evening) and the island of Lundy to the North. There is a topograph here which shows the headlands and moorland summits visible on a clear day.

6. From the point follow the path along the edge of the beach above the breakwater down to the canal, and walk up the canal.
7. Cross the bridge by the Falcon hotel and turn right onto the canal towpath.

In Victorian times, Bude was a popular seaside resort and many of the Victorian buildings remain. Possibly inspired by the sandstone being quarried in Bude and heated in lime kilns, the Victorian inventor who invented limelight built his home here (grandly named Bude Castle) which is now a heritage centre.

In more recent times, Bude has become famous for its Jazz Festival in August. There is a Tourist Information Centre in the main car park.

8. Follow the towpath up the canal.

The sandstone around Bude was used as a source of lime to improve the fertility of the acid soils around Bodmin Moor.

"the quantity which is every season carried away from different parts of the coast for the purpose of manure almost exceeds belief. From Bude, in the parish of Stratton it has been ascertained that in one day as many as four thousand horse loads have been taken."

Transactions of the Royal Geological Society of Cornwall 1818.

Bude Canal was built to carry lime inland and the original canal system spanned 35 miles. This included "inclined planes" (hills in a canal!) where canal boats were hauled uphill using waterwheels or in one instance VERY large buckets of water. Today, 2 miles of canal remain filled with water at Bude. The canal is popular with fisherman as it's one of the few watercourese in Cornwall where you can catch coarse fish. It's also a nice spot for a leisurely walk. You can pick up some leaflets (70p) from Tintagel Visitor Centre for "Bude Canal trails" - some circular walks with information about the history.

9. At Rodd's Bridge the path crosses to the other side of the canal, turn left and continue ascending the canal on the other bacnk
10. Follow the towpath past the weir with the River Neet past a footbrige to a bridge where a lane goes over the river signposted "Helebridge and Marhamchurch"
11. Cross the stile on the right and follow the footpath left signposted "Widemouth Bay"
12. A little further along the riverbank cross the stile on the right by Walesborough Farm and head towards the tea rooms
13. In front of the drive to the tea rooms there is a stile to the left - cross this and head across the field to a stile next to the far gate

If you are crossing fields with cows in:

• Do not show any threatening behaviour towards calves (approaching them closely, making loud noises or walking between a calf and its mother) as you may provoke the mother to defend her young. Generally the best plan is to walk along the hedges.
• If cows approach you, do not run away as this will encourage them to chase you. Stand your ground and stretch out your arms to increase your size.
• Avoid taking dogs in fields with cows, particularly with calves. If you must, release the dog if cows charge as the dog will outrun the cows and the cows will generally chase the dog rather than you.
14. Follow the path diagonally across the next field to the left of the woods, and along of the left hedge of the field after that
15. In the next field the path heads to the bottom left corner. Go straight ahead through the gateway and follow the path along the right hedge in the same direction you've been heading
16. At the corner of the field the path heads diagonally left to a stile next to gateway onto the road
17. Cross the road and take the left of the two tracks
18. Where a footpath crosses the track, take the path left back to Widemouth Bay car park

Widemouth is the southernmost of the Bude beaches. As the name implies this is a substantial stretch of sand and faces west into the Atlantic. Consequently, when there is a big surf running there can be some absolutely monster waves at Widemouth which can make you wonder why going surfing seemed like a good idea at the time. The size of the beach means it's never that crowded even in summer. In the autumn and winter it's a good place to see expert surfers.

Map of Route

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Other walks nearby

• Walks in the bude area
• Walks in the widemouth bay area

Related walks you might be interested in

• Walks with a beach
• Circular walks
• Coastal walks
• Walks with potential for foraging
• Heritage walks
• Pub walks
• Wildlife walks