Routes

Planner

Features

Updates

App

Get the App

Routes

Hiking trails & Routes

Eype & Thorncombe Beacon loop from West Bay — Dorset

Routes

Hiking trails & Routes

Eype & Thorncombe Beacon loop from West Bay — Dorset

Moderate

4.8

(8)

hikers

Eype & Thorncombe Beacon loop from West Bay — Dorset

02:18

7.98km

190m

Hiking

Moderate hike. Good fitness required. Easily-accessible paths. Suitable for all skill levels. The starting point of the route is accessible with public transport.

Last updated: June 10, 2024

Tips

Your route passes through a protected area

Please check local regulations for:

Dorset AONB

Waypoints

Start point

Bus stop

Get Directions

286 m

West Bay Harbour

Highlight • Settlement

Part of the Jurassic Coast in Dorset, West Bay is a beautiful harbour settlement. Originally designed as a commercial harbour for nearly Bridport to export fishing nets, West Bay declined in importance with the advent of the railways. Not a natural harbour and exposed to the south, over the centuries many attempts have been made to prevent it from silting up and to repair storm damage.

Today, West Bay is a thriving fishing harbour popular with tourists. With a wonderful beach and impressive cliffs, it's well worth visiting. It should be noted that it's part of an eroding landscape and cliff falls have occurred in recent years so always respect warnings and signage.

Tip by

1.47 km

View of West Cliff and Lyme Bay

Highlight (Segment) • Natural Monument

West Cliff rises spectacularly between West Bay and Eype Mouth above Dorset's Lyme Bay. From this cliff path, you can see the vast Thorncombe Beacon to the west and, in good, haze-free days, you can see all the way around Lyme Bay in both directions. Portland is usually very obviously to the south east.

Take care while walking and stay back from the cliff edge; the landscape here reveals the constant weathering and erosion of the south coast.

Tip by

3.38 km

Thorncombe Beacon

Highlight • Viewpoint

Thorncombe Beacon once formed part of a chain of beacon sites along the South Coast to warn of the approach of the Spanish Armada in 1588. These days, you can still enjoy wonderful coastal views from this great vantage point.

Tip by

5.80 km

St Peter's Church, Eype

Highlight • Religious Site

This pretty, 19th-century church sits in the tiny Dorset village of Eype and doubles up as a community arts centre. Amazingly, the singer PJ Harvey recorded her 8th album here. Built from local stone and sitting high above the sea, the church is a lovely place to visit on a local walk and its churchyard has far reaching views of Lyme Bay.

Tip by

7.98 km

End point

Bus stop

Way Types & Surfaces

Way Types

3.10 km

2.77 km

940 m

762 m

397 m

Surfaces

3.46 km

1.37 km

925 m

845 m

Elevation

Nothing selected – click and drag below to see the stats for a specific part of the route.

Highest point (110 m)

Lowest point (undefined)

Weather

Friday 17 July

27°C

15°C

12 %

Additional weather tips

Max wind speed: 18.0 km/h

to get more detailed weather forecasts along your route

Comments

Want to know more?

This route was planned by komoot.

Navigate

Send to Phone

Save

Edit route

Download GPX

Move start point

Embed on a website

Report an Issue

Report restricted access

Nearby routes

Hard

4.7

981

A loop of Portland from Chesil Beach

05:36h

20.3km

330m

Moderate

4.7

500

Golden Cap Circular Trail

03:10h

10.8km

290m

Moderate

4.7

257

Golden Cap Trust 10

03:07h

10.6km

290m

Moderate

4.4

285

Charmouth & East Beach loop from Lyme Regis — Dorset

02:42h

9.41km

220m

Moderate

4.7

213

Golden Cap and Stonebarrow Hill Circular Trail

02:46h

9.26km

280m

Moderate

4.7

322

South West Coast Path: Beer and Branscombe Circular

02:01h

6.86km

190m

Hard

4.5

334

South West Coast Path: Seaton to Lyme Regis via The Undercliff

07:05h

24.8km

560m

Moderate

4.7

191

Minterne Magna and the Cerne Giant loop

03:02h

11.0km

190m

Moderate

4.9

160

Lyme Regis to Uplyme Riverside Walk loop

02:47h

10.0km

180m

Moderate

4.8

166

Abbotsbury and Chesil Beach views — National Trust coastal walks in West Dorset

03:01h

10.6km

230m

Hard

4.8

118

Charmouth, Golden Cap & Langdon Hill loop from Lyme Regis

05:33h

18.6km

570m

Moderate

4.4

121

Macmillan Way and Melbury Park Loop

02:19h

8.49km

130m

Eype & Thorncombe Beacon loop from West Bay — Dorset

West Bay Harbour

View of West Cliff and Lyme Bay

Thorncombe Beacon

St Peter's Church, Eype

Nearby routes

Sign up or log in to keep exploring this route

We value your privacy ⛰️

We value your privacy ⛰️