Walking Forum
Regions - Trip reports, destination advice, recommended routes, etc. => South West England => Topic started by: PansyP on 10:32:23, 20/05/20
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Hi, myself and my daughter had been walking the SWCP but covid has put a stop to that! Even though I only live a stones through from a lot of it, as the coastal towns have declared independence from England and kept their car parks closed we can’t access it. Now we’re walking around Somerset / Devon and Dorset and I’m looking for circular walks of around 10 miles. There seem to be quite a few short walks of 4-5 miles and we found one circular of nine going across the Quantocks. Does anyone have any suggestions for some good routes.
Thanks 😊.
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Try ViewRanger or https://osmaps.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/ There are literally hundreds of routes in them and you can set the search criteria for activity and distance.
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The Otter valley, south of Ottery St Mary, is well supplied with well waymarked and walkable footpaths which can be linked to Mutters Moor, Woodbury common and the SWCP. Plenty of options to cobble together suitable routes with varied countryside.
and The Mill at Otterton is currently doing take-away cream teas :)
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The SWCP has a page where you can find local walks up to 15 miles, see:-
https://www.southwestcoastpath.org.uk/mapboards-walk-leaflets/
Wish I was there again rather than staying isolated in our house but better than the alternative rather than being a "Coronaidiot"!
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Thanks Harland, but the SWCP path walks all involve using car parks at coastal sites and most of these are closed so there’s no chance of getting access in this area. Yes I really wish I could onto as well, maybe when the coastal towns decide to open up; when they want our money we’ll get access.
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Personally, I tend to much prefer looking at maps and choosing my own routes, rather than following suggestions. I love the finding and planning aspect of it, even if I never actually get to walk all the places I find.
However, I know lots of people prefer to follow recommendations, so I do post some. I'll put a plug in here for my Viewranger routes, a lot of which are in the area you want.
https://my.viewranger.com/route/search/brand/259#!45.87858246241647|7.730342337317056|4
You shouldn't have to pay to get to see the overview of the route and thus be able to find it on an OS map.
However, I wouldn't want to encourage anyone to stray far out of their own area. Despite Boris lifting the travel restrictions, I see no reason why anyone should need to travel far for leisure or exercise. Those councils that have kept their carparks closed are doing an admirable job trying to protect not only their own residents but the wider population.