Dramatic coastal scenery, Lulworth cove, hidden beaches, Durdle Door cliff arch, and a ghost town.
Danger Area |
The Tyneham Loop of this walk leads through the Lulworth Army Firing Range, part of the Armoured Fighting Vehicles Gunnery School. It is open a) most weekends and b) school holidays (i.e. its closed most weekdays and a few weekends). Check before travelling! If closed, you can always do the Durdle Door Loop, and a short part of the Tyneham Loop above Lulworth Cove, to and from the Range boundary. | ||||||||||||
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Length |
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Toughness |
10 out of 10 | ||||||||||||
OS Map |
Landranger 194 (Dorchester & Weymouth) and 195 (Bournemouth & Purbeck); Explorer OL15 (Purbeck & South Dorset) | ||||||||||||
Features |
This is a beautiful and challenging coastal walk along Purbeck's Jurassic Coast. It takes int he iconic Lulworth Cove, Durdle Door (an arch), dramatic white cliff coastal scenery, and the WW2 abandoned and ruined village of Tyneham. The walk is a 'dog bone' shape, centred on Lulworth Cove. The 2 independent loops can be done on their own, and with a car, you can skip the strenuous link between them. The longer Tyneham loop starts with a hill, with fine views of the coast before following the coast over dramatic cliffs. It then climbs a ridge above Tyneham with a 360° view of Purbeck. It then descends into the ghost village, which is worth exploring (church, museum), and climbs the other side of the valley to the cliff edge. It then follows the rollercoaster South West Coast Path (SWCP) back to Lulworth Cove, past a beach and more dramatic viewpoints. The abandoned and ruined coastal village of Tyneham was evacuated at very short notice in December 1943 at the behest of the War Office to prepare troops for D-Day. The inhabitants were never allowed to return. The village is now a picturesque ruin. The shorter, gentler Durdle Door loop follows the SWCP west along cliffs to Durdle Door (an arch) and down to a nice beach. The return is slightly inland, on a higher path (with less ups and downs) over open grassland, with fine views of the coast. The link between the 2 loops has dramatic coast views, but also 2 strenuous ascents and descents in each direction! Public transport from Wool Station to Lulworth Cove is infrequent, seasonal, and changes every year! There is a link Route from Wool Station to Arish Mell (near the middle of the link between the 2 loops). This makes the walk independent of buses and/or taxis, while enabling variations of the walk, cutting out some of the steep ascents. Warning: the Tyneham Loop, and the link from Lulworth Cove goes through the Lulworth Live Firing Ranges. Access is only permitted along the marked Range Walks and only at certain times (most weekends and assorted holiday periods). See below for exact dates. | ||||||||||||
Walk Options |
Tyneham and Durdle Door LoopsThe walk route is a dog-bone / figure-of-eight with the start at Lulworth Cove, the junction of the two loops. You can therefore walk just one of those loops, or walk them in a different order than the directions suggest, or even over two days (there are plenty of accommodation options in West Lulworth):
Tyneham Loop
Wool Station linkA link route between Wool station and the walk route at Arish Mell beach (in the middle of the Tyneham loop) has been described in both directions, so you can reduce your reliance on a bus or a taxi at start and finish and can also combine this route with parts of the full walk.
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Travel |
Wool Station is on the Waterloo to Weymouth Main Line, with one train per hour (journey time 149 mins Mondays-Saturdays, 154 mins on Sundays). You then - after a long train journey - have to connect with a bus or walk (8 km each way ) to the coast on an already long walk. Bus services are much improved in 2019. The following buses connect Wool Station to Lulworth Cove (ca. £2.00 each way): Purbeck Breezer 30 (late May-late Sep: daily, but weekdays only most of June); X54 (Oct-Mar: Mon-Fri, Apr-Sep: daily); 55 (summer weekends only, but daily during Dorset summer holidays). For more details see below. Saturday Walkers’ Club: Take a train no later than 8.05 hours. | ||||||||||||
Lunch and Tea |
See the pdf for details. | ||||||||||||
Links |
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Lulworth Cove |
Lulworth Cove, nearby Durdle Door (a cliff arch) and the dramatic white cliffs' coastal scenery are stunningly beautiful, and very popular and busy on sunny summer weekends. TravelWool Station is 7 kilometres north of Lulworth Cove on the Waterloo to Weymouth Main Line. Trains are hourly. Journey time 149 mins Mondays-Saturdays, 154 mins on Sundays. Wool Station to Lulworth Cove: bus or taxiUpdated : July 2019. Check online, recently these bus services have changed every year! Check Traveline South West.
Wool has two pubs close to the station to await your train, and a local store that keeps long hours. By CarAbout 3 hours drive from London.
StayWest Lulworth has a YHA youth hostel, a HF hotel, a campsite (mostly caravans, but they take tents), and B&Bs and Hotels. |
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Lulworth Ranges Danger Area |
This is an army live firing range around Tyneham, just to the east of Lulworth Cove.
It is only open at certain times. Access is allowed along marked Range Walks. They are shown on OS maps.
Lulworth Range WalksThe Range Walks are open
Latest updates : MOD : Lulworth Access Times 2020The Lulworth Range walks and Tyneham Villages are open to the public every weekend with the exception of the following: 1. 22nd/23rd February 2020 2. 14th/15th March 2020 3. 13th/14th June 2020 4. 19th/20th September 2020 5. 03rd/04th October 2020 6. 14th/15th November 2020 In addition to the weekends they are open every day during the following times; all dates are inclusive: Christmas 21st December 2019 – 05th January 2020 Easter 04th – 19th April 2020 May Day 08th May 2020 (a Friday!) May Stand-down 25th May – 31st May 2020 Summer Stand-down 21st July – 31st August 2020 Christmas 19th December 2020 – 03rd January 2021 |
Profile | |
Help Us! |
After the walk, we would love to get your feedback You can upload photos to the SWC Group on Flickr (upload your photos) and videos to Youtube. This walk's tags are:
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By Car |
Start Main Road, West Lulworth, Dorset, BH20 5RQ Map Directions |
Amazon | |
Help |
National Rail: 03457 48 49 50 • Travelline (bus times): 0871 200 22 33 (12p/min) • TFL (London) : 0343 222 1234 |
Version | |
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Walk Directions
Full directions for this walk are in a PDF file (link above) which you can print, or download on to a Kindle, tablet, or smartphone.
This is just the introduction. This walk's detailed directions are in a PDF available from wwww.walkingclub.org.uk