Lulworth Cove via Tyneham and Durdle Door Circular walk

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.

Length

Full Walk	22.2 km (13.8 miles)	974 metres of ascent
Tyneham Village Loop	16.8 km (10.5 mi)	747 metres of ascent
Durdle Door Loop	5.4 km (3.3 mi)	227 metres of ascent
To/From Wool Station Option	8.4 km (5.2 mi)	negligible

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 Loops

The 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 : Lulworth Cove along the rollercoaster coast path to Flower's Barrow Hill, then the Tyneham village loop. Toughness: 9/10
Durdle Door Loop : Lulworth Cove to Durdle Door viewpoint, then down to the beach or back through a scenic coombe. Toughness: 3/10

Tyneham Loop

The path along the beach at Lulworth Cove can be impassable in very high tides. In that case you would either have to walk the Durdle Door Loop first, or reverse-walk (map-led) the route up to the Access Land of Bindon Hill and to the easterly end of Lulworth Cove to pick up the route there.
The ascent of the 134m Gad Cliff south of Tyneham village can be avoided by following the Hardy Way along the valley bottom, from Warbarrow Bay to Tyneham village.
There is a (recommended) short out-and-back extension to a viewpoint on Gad Cliff before descending to Tyneham
There is an optional (but recommended) loop through Tyneham village itself, past most of the ruined cottages and to the church.
Car Drivers can park at Povington Hill car park above Tyneham village, or even in Tyneham village and walk just a short loop via Rings Hill/Flower’s Barrow hillfort, Worbarrow Bay, Gad Cliff and Tyneham village.

Wool Station link

A 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.

Rest of Tyneham Loop from Arish Mell: 8.6 km/5.3 mi with 380m ascent/descent;
Arish Mell – Lulworth Cove: 3.6 km/2.2 mi with 139/131m ascent/descent.
Lulworth Cove to Arish Mell: 4.6 km/2.9 mi with 228/236m ascent/descent;

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

Lulworth Cove Inn, Main Road, West Lulworth, Wareham, Dorset, BH20 5RQ (01929 400 333, Open every day 11.00-22.30. Food served every day 12.00-21.00. Hall & Woodhouse). Right by the bus stop. Very good considering its location.
Lulworth Cove, West Lulworth, Durdle Door : Plenty of options.
Tyneham: nothing
Arish Mell to Wool station link route : One pub and a tea room.
Wool : 3 pubs, two of which are close enough to the station to be useful.

See the pdf for details.

Links

Tyneham Village was evacuated at short notice by the army during WWII to prepare troops for D-Day, but the villagers were never allowed back. The village church, rows of cottages, the school (now a museum, free) and some ruined house remain. The sign on the church reads: Please treat the church and houses with care; we have given up our homes where many of us lived for generations to help win the war to keep men free. We shall return one day and thank you for treating the village kindly.
The Jurassic Coast is a marketing name for this gorgeous stretch of very old coastline - white limestone, with lots of cliff features - coves and arches. It is the real star of this walk. The entire area is geology heaven.
Lulworth Cove - looks dramatic from afar, not quite so special close up.
Durdle Door - a cliff arch, dramatic from near and afar.


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. Travel Wool 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 taxi Updated : July 2019. Check online, recently these bus services have changed every year! Check Traveline South West. 30: Swanage - Corfe Castle - Wareham station - Wool station - Lulworth Cove - Osmington - Weymouth King's Statue. 25 May - 02 June & 24 June - 21 September: Daily. 03 - 23 June: Weekends Only. Hourly. First bus from Wool station to Lulworth Cove: 10.13 Mon-Fri, 10.16 Sat-Sun. Last bus from Lulworth Cove to Wool station 18.14. X54: Weymouth King's Statue - Osmington - Durdle Door - Lulworth Cove - Wool Station - Wareham Station - Poole. Daily April to September, weekdays only in winter. From Wool station to Lulworth Cove at 10.39, 13.19 etc. From Lulworth Cove to Wool station at 10.43, 13.13, 17.23. Last bus from Lulworth Cove is the 19.45 in the opposite direction to Weymouth. 55: Weymouth King's Statue - Osmington - Durdle Door - Lulworth Cove - Wool Station - Bovington Camp. Weekends 19 April to 15 September plus daily during Dorset School Holidays (24 July - 30 August). From Wool station to Lulworth Cove at 12.15, 13.15, 15.15 etc. Mon-Sat & Bank Hols and 12.42, 13.42, 15.42, 17.05 Sun. From Lulworth Cove to Wool station at 11.40, ..., 15.40, 16.40 Mon-Sat & Bank Hols and 11.40, 13.04, 14.07, 16.07 Sun. Fares are about £2 from Wool station. Note that returns bought on the Damory Purbeck Breezer 30 are not valid on the First Wessex X54 and 55, and vice versa! Taxis: Lulworth – 01929 400864, 07949 522 533, 01929 444 546, 01929 400 409; Wool – 01929 463 395, 01929 558 119, 01929 500 604, 07751 769 833. [Aug-19] Expect fares of about £15 (and £22 for an 8-seater). Wool has two pubs close to the station to await your train, and a local store that keeps long hours. By Car About 3 hours drive from London. On the ridge above Tyneham is Povington Hill Car Park (free, no postcode), not far from East Lulworth (BH20 5QQ). You can park in Tyneham itself (£2 suggested). There are large, expensive car parks at Lulworth Cove (BH20 5RQ), and by Durdle Dor campsite, or you can park for free about 1 km inland in West Lulworth village (BH20 5SG). Stay West Lulworth has a YHA youth hostel, a HF hotel, a campsite (mostly caravans, but they take tents), and B&Bs and Hotels.

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 Walks The Range Walks are open most weekends (they are closed about 6 weekends a year) every day during Dorset school holidays. Latest updates : MOD : Lulworth Access Times The Lulworth Range walks and Tyneham Villages are: Open to the public every weekend with the exception of the following: 2021 18 / 19 September 2021 02 / 03 October 2021 06 / 07 November 2021 2022 19 / 20 February 2022 12 / 13 March 2022 25 / 26 June 2022 24 / 25 September 2022 08 / 09 October 2022 05 / 06 November 2022 On completion of firing the gates to the walks are opened as near as possible to 16.30 on the Friday afternoon. Please note that this is dependent on completion of range clearance and weather. The gates will then remain open until 8.00 on the Monday morning. In addition to the weekends they are Open every day during the following times (similar to school holidays); all dates are inclusive: 2021 Summer stand-down 28th July – 31st August 2021 Christmas 18th December 2021 – 03rd January 2022 2022 Easter: 9 to 24 April 2022 Spring stand-down: 28 May to 5 June 2022 Summer stand-down: 29 July to 31 Aug 2022 Christmas: 17 Dec 2022 to 2 Jan 2023
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By Car	Start Main Road, West Lulworth, Dorset, BH20 5RQ Map Directions
Amazon	OS Explorer OL15 Bradt Dorset Rough Guide Dorset & Hampshire Cicerone Dorset Walking Guide Collins Dorset Walking Guide
Help	🚧 Start walking Large print Using GPS data National Rail: 03457 48 49 50 • Travelline (bus times): 0871 200 22 33 (12p/min) • TFL (London) : 0343 222 1234
Version	Aug-19 Andrew Thomas G
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