A few weeks ago, leaving the bustle (and cold) of London, I headed out to walk part of the Jurassic Coast with a few course mates. I’ve been traveling outside of England a lot, so it was nice to finally see part of the country that has been my home this year.
Day 1: Weymouth to West Lulworth ~12 miles
Day 2: West Lulworth to Worth Matravers ~14 miles
The older couple that owned Tewksbury Cottage were the nicest people and cooked up a massive English breakfast for us before we set out for day two. I wish I could say I was into this part of English culture but I just find eating tomato-y baked beans in the morning to be too overwhelming of a task. We first headed down to see Lulworth cove and then set off to a day of roller coaster hills. The views of the turquoise water were incredible and we were lucky enough to have another day of sun, although for part of it we found ourselves walking through a giant cloud. We didn’t have a real map for this trip, thinking that the walk was pretty straightforward. However, a lot of the trail is constantly changing, as parts are too dangerous to walk because of erosion. Naturally, we reached a point where we wanted to find lunch and took a part of the path we thought would lead to a small village, or I was later corrected ‘hamlet’, where we could eat. Somehow our short cut turned into an adventure through cow pastures, past llamas, and over barbed wire fences. We finally found our way to ‘the hamlet’. After lunch, we trudged along to finally reach Worth Matravers and a pub, The Square and Compass; which we were told was a must-do. It turns out there are two Worth Matravers and we were still two miles from the Walkers Barn in the other Worth Matravers where we were staying. Exhausted (mostly me), we decided to sit for a few beers and pies before walking the last bit in the dark.
3: (The Real) Worth Matravers to Swanage ~8 miles
Feeling pretty beat we were happy to find that our final day was far shorter and easier than the previous two. We took the day slowly and stopped for breaks and snacks fairly often. The views to Swanage were equally impressive but the trail became busier the closer we got to the city. Before catching the bus from Swanage to Poole we stopped for lunch and ice cream. Coming back into London from Poole, I felt pretty satisfied with how smelly and worn I felt and looked from three incredible days walking the Jurrasic Coast with the loveliest of friends.
This is an easy and cheap long weekend trip from London that will leave you feeling the perfect kind of exhausted and accomplished for the start of a new week.
Love Love.
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