Hiking on the Jurassic Coast

England’s only natural World Heritage Site, stretching over 95 miles from Exeter to Poole. The most stunning scenery, quaint villages and epic cliffs.

In 2020 I decided to travel between Exeter and Brighton along the coast. It just so happened that it meant walking the length of the Jurassic Coast.

Over two, four day weekends, myself and two groups friends walked between Exeter and Poole, over 99 miles between us. It was the most incredible journey. My only thought? Why hadn’t I does this sooner?!

Jurassic Coast: 99 miles

Start / End Point: Kemble to Southend on Sea

Journey: 8 days (2x 4 day trips)

Average miles per day: 17 miles

Number of blisters: Too many!

Time of year travelled: September

Adventure Blueprint

The start of the Jurassic Coast is near Exeter train station.

Details below include our original plan and in the notes below is what actually happened.

    
                Day
            
                Approx Distance(kms)
            
                Start Point
            
                End Point
            
                Accommodation
            
                Notes
            
            0
            -
            
            -
            
            -
            
            Tavern Inn at Kemble (camping)
            
            Train London to Kemble for the night before starting
            
            1[a]
            36
            
            Thames Head
            
            Lechlade
            
            N/A
            
            Completed on a bike
            
            1[b]
            10
            
            Lechlade
            
            Radcot Bridge
            
            Ye Olde Swan Tipi Villiage (opposite Ye Olde Swan Pub)
            
            Switched bikes for SUP (we had a support crew)
            
            2
            27
            
            Radcot Bridge
            
            Eynsham Lock
            
            Campsite at Eynsham Lock on the Island
            
            Facilities available at Eynsham Lock
            
            3
            32.5
            
            Eynsham Lock
            
            Clifton Lock
            
            Bridge House Campsite
            
            -
            
            4
            30
            
            Clifton Lock
            
            Pangbourne
            
            Wild camping between Goring Lock and Pangbourne
            
            We wanted to sleep at Goring, however there were no wild camping or riverside accommodation, so we continued to Pangbourne. It was a little tricky to find a wild camping spot, so explore the area to see if there is anything new that's opened up.
            
            5
            27
            
            Pangbourne
            
            Henley-on-Thames
            
            Camping on the grounds of Henley Sea Cadets
            
            We were fortunate to meet an organised group of kayakers on the river, who had arranged to stay on the grounds of the Henley Sea Cadets. Contact Henley Sea Cadets, to see if it's possible to stay, as it has great access to the river, or find alternative accommodation.
            
            6
            26
            
            Henley-on-Thames
            
            Bray Lock
            
            Amerden Caravan and Campsite
            
            -
            
            7
            34
            
            Bray Lock
            
            Sunbury Lock
            
            Wild camping
            
            There were no campsites and we didn’t want the expense of a hotel on the river, so we ate at The Weir Hotel and discretely set up our tent in the grass area next to the property of the pub and ate at the pub.
            
            8[a]
            13
            
            Sunbury Lock
            
            Teddington Lock
            
            N/A
            
            The last section of the tidal Thames.
            
            8[b]
            19
            
            Teddington Lock
            
            Putney Foreshore (before the Bridge)
            
            Premier Inn London Putney Bridge

                (SUP boards stored at a rowing club on the foreshore - arranged prior to arriving)
            
            Once you reach Teddington Lock, the Thames becomes tidal, so we needed to plan our day according to the tide times.
                
                From Teddington to Putney Bridge, there are no restrictions to SUPing on that section of the river. You just need to obey the river rules, as there are lots of rowers.
            
            9
            27
            
            Putney Foreshore
            
            North Woolwich
            
            Travel Lodge London Woolwich
            
            Onwards from Putney Bridge, prior permission is needed to paddle with the Port of London Authority.

                We would recommend making first contact with the PLA at least 3 months before your journey commences.
            
            10
            25
            
            North Woolwich
            Gravesend
            
            A hotel in Gravesend
            
            -
            
            11
            30
            
            Gravesend
            Southend Pier
            
            Back to London after our paddle. The train along Southend Pier, followed by a mainland train back to London.
            
            This was the plan. In reality on the day we had to break up the 30 kms over two days and exit at Hole Haven. This was due to a storm approaching, which would have made it dangerous for ourselves and the safety boat to remain on the water. We paddled the remaining 15kms from Hole Haven to Southend Pier, on a seperate day.

Kit List

Below is the list of gear we took for each four day trip.

Camping Kit

Lightweight tent fly

Sleeping mat

Inflatable pillow

Sleeping bag and liner

First aid kit

Gas cooker and lighter

Flat pack BBQ

Bowl and cutlery

Swiss Army knife

Eco friendly washing liquid

2L Water bottle and 2L bladder

Battery pack, charger

Camera

Clothes

Other Kit

Two changes of paddle clothes (items dependent on season)

Waterproof jacket and puffer jacket

One change of warm cloths for the evening

Swimwear (or use a sports bra and pants)

Water shoes

Trainers or flip flops

Toiletries

Hand gel (and mask in Covid times)

Travel towel

Chargers / Phone / Camera / Money

River Thames Map

50L waterproof bags

Dry bags

Great Resources

Map of the River Thames (Imray) - a MUST buy!
Thames Lock Info (water, toilets, camping etc.)
Thames21 and Citizen Science
Tideway
Active360
Gravesend Sea Cadets
River Thames Tide Times
Windy - a great weather app
PLA
Paddle Code

You can see a copy of our Passage Plan and Risk Assessment that we created for the PLA to give us permission to SUP from Putney Bridge to Southend-on-Sea. We needed to complete this in 2015. Refer to the Paddle Code for more recente PLA guidance.