Wales Coast Path

The coastline of Wales, showing start and end points of the trail. Inset: location of Wales within the United Kingdom

The two stone pillars alongside the River Dee mark the northern start/finish of the Wales Coast Path

The stone at Chepstow marking the southern end of the Wales Coast Path, with the path's "dragon shell" logo

The Wales Coast Path shell logo

The Wales Coast Path (Welsh: Llwybr Arfordir Cymru) is a long-distance footpath which follows, or runs close to, the majority of the coastline of Wales. It opened on 5 May 2012, and offers a 870-mile (1,400 km) walking route from Chepstow in the south to Queensferry in the north.^[1]

Wales is the first country in the world to provide a dedicated footpath close to most of its coastline. The Path runs through eleven National Nature Reserves and other nature reserves, including those managed by The Wildlife Trusts or Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB).^[2] Lonely Planet rated the coast of Wales first in its Best in Travel: top 10 regions for 2012.^[3]

Description

The Wales Coast Path was launched on 5 May 2012, and was heralded as the world's first coastal path to cover an entire country.^[4][5][6] It follows the entire Welsh coastline from Chepstow in the south east to near Queensferry in the north. Many parts already had established paths, such as the North Wales Path, the Anglesey Coastal Path and the Llŷn Coastal Path. The Pembrokeshire Coast Path had been a designated National Trail,^[7] and in 2011 was voted by National Geographic magazine as the second-best coastal destination in the world.^[8][9]

The path travels through 870 miles (1,400 km) of coastal landscape, from the mouth of the River Dee, along the north Wales coast with its seaside towns such as Conwy, over the Menai Strait onto the Isle of Anglesey, past Caernarfon, and then around the Llŷn Peninsula and down the sweep of Cardigan Bay past Harlech, Aberystwyth, and Cardigan, through the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park to Tenby, around the Gower Peninsula to Swansea, along the waterfront of Cardiff Bay and Cardiff, the capital city of Wales, to the market town of Chepstow.^[1]

The whole path is accessible to walkers and, where practical, some sections are suitable for cyclists, families with pushchairs, people with restricted mobility, and horse riders.^[2]

Overall responsibility for establishing the path lay with the Countryside Council for Wales (now Natural Resources Wales), but management on the ground rests with the 15 local government areas it passes through.^[10] Five waymarked long-distance coast paths were already established, in Pembrokeshire, Anglesey, Gwynedd, Ceredigion and the North Wales coast. These formed the basis for five of the eight geographical sections^[11] that now make up the path. The remaining three areas are made up of single and combined counties and county boroughs with coastlines.^[12]

The Wales Coast Path is not a National Trail; the England Coast Path, when completed in 2020, will be.^[13]

History and development

View from the Pembrokeshire Coast Path on Marloes peninsula.

The Wales Coast Path was developed by the Welsh Government in partnership with the former Countryside Council for Wales, sixteen local authorities and two National Parks. Since 2007 the Welsh Government has invested in improving public access to the Welsh coast through its Coastal Access Improvement Programme. In addition to this funding from the Welsh Government and the coastal local authorities of approximately £2 million per year, the European Regional Development Fund has additionally allocated nearly £3.9 million over three years in support of the project.^[14][15]

The idea was developed from a desire to build on the economic success of the Pembrokeshire Coast Path National Trail^[16] and the Isle of Anglesey Coastal Path.^[17] Plans for the new all-Wales coastal path were first unveiled by First Minister Rhodri Morgan in June 2006, when he officially opened the 125-mile route around Anglesey. It was anticipated that the Wales Coast Path project, which would improve access and link up existing paths, would take up to five years; it has been nearer six.^[18] Both the Pembrokeshire and Anglesey coastal paths were considered as major contributors to the visitor economy of Wales, and in addition to financial benefits, it was also seen as an important initiative in encouraging both locals and visitors to discover and enjoy Wales’ outdoor spaces, and in the health and welfare benefits that such paths provide.

The Countryside Council for Wales, which supervised the project, had said that improvements to the quality and alignment of the route would continue during 2012 and 2013 to ensure that the path follows the Welsh coastline as close as it is safe and practical. Over time, the completed path is expected to lead to the creation of circular coastal routes, as links to inland towns and villages are improved.^[19]

The opening

The official opening of the 870-mile (1,400 km) path took place in a number of locations on 5 May 2012 highlighting the path’s beauty and ease of access for walkers of all ages, fitness and ability. To help celebrate the opening, Ramblers Cymru hosted the Big Welsh Coastal Walk, one of the largest mass participation events ever seen in Wales.^[20]

The Countryside Council for Wales asked Chester-based outdoor specialists, Northern Eye Books, to create the Official Guidebooks for five of the seven main sections of the Wales Coast Path: North Wales Coast, Isle of Anglesey, Llyn Peninsula, Carmarthenshire and Gower, and the South Wales Coast.^[21] They already publish the Official Guide for Anglesey, Walking the Isle of Anglesey Coastal Path by Carl Rogers. The remaining titles were due for publication in late 2012 and 2013. There were existing guides to the Ceredigion Coast Path and the Pembrokeshire Coast Path by other publishers.

The first anniversary of the opening of the path was marked on radio and television, and it is estimated that in that first year some 2.8 million people walked stretches of the path, contributing £16 million to the Welsh economy.^[22] Further to this, it is estimated that more than 800,000 visitors to the path also stayed the night in one of the many guest-houses, B&B's and hotels along the route.^[22]

A complete walk around Wales

The 870 miles (1,400 km) of the Wales Coast Path links with the Offa's Dyke Path National Trail,^[23] which loosely follows the border with England, to create a 1,030-mile (1,660 km) continuous walking route around almost the whole of Wales, although skirting past Flintshire and Wrexham.

Sections

The Wales Coast path website divides the 870-mile (1,400 km) coast route into sections with an accompanying map. These are (from north to south):^[24]

Section	Distance[25]	Antecedents	Unitary Authorities	Route
North Wales Coast & Dee Estuary Main article: North Wales Path	68 miles (109 km)	North Wales Path, opened 1997, covers parts of this section.[26]	Flintshire: 27 miles (43 km) Denbighshire: 7 miles (11 km) Conwy: 35 miles (56 km)
Isle of Anglesey Main article: Anglesey Coastal Path	132 miles (212 km)	Anglesey Coastal Path, opened 2006.[27]	Isle of Anglesey
Menai, Llŷn & Meirionnydd Main article: Llŷn Coastal Path	189 miles (304 km)	Llŷn Coastal Path 91 miles (146 km) opened 2006[28] and expanded to take in the rest of Gwynedd.[29]	Gwynedd
Ceredigion Main article: Ceredigion Coast Path	72 miles (116 km)	Ceredigion Coast Path opened 2008.[30]	Powys: 5 miles (8.0 km) Ceredigion: 67 miles (108 km)
Pembrokeshire Main article: Pembrokeshire Coast Path	186 miles (299 km)	Pembrokeshire Coast Path is a National Trail, opened in 1970.[31]	Pembrokeshire
Carmarthenshire See below	68 miles (109 km)	Millennium Coastal Park, 13 miles (21 km), near Llanelli,[32] opened 2002[33]	Carmarthenshire
Gower & Swansea Bay Main article: Gower and Swansea Bay Coast Path ,	71 miles (114 km)	Gower Coast Path (Informal route, 2005)[34]	Swansea: 56 miles (90 km) Neath Port Talbot: 16 miles (26 km)
South Wales Coast & Severn Estuary Main article: South Wales Coast and Severn Estuary Coastal Path	97 miles (156 km)	Coastal parts of the Valeways Millennium Heritage Trail, opened 2001.[35]	Bridgend: 12 miles (19 km) Vale of Glamorgan: 38 miles (61 km) Cardiff: 9 miles (14 km) Newport: 26 miles (42 km) Monmouthshire: 15 miles (24 km)

Controversy

The Open Spaces Society has criticised some landowners who do not allow the path onto their coastal land. This means 170 miles (270 km) – more than 20% of the route – will be on roads, sometimes out of sight of the sea. In response, a Countryside Council for Wales spokeswoman said: “Just over 20% of the WCP is on road, slightly less than the average for national trails in Britain, which is in the region of 25%. This is mainly on quiet, country lanes.”^[36]

There is currently a temporary road route north of Cardigan, connecting Gwbert with Mwnt; the actual Ceredigion Coast Path section within that vicinity is currently unavailable because of legal proceedings.^[37]

Walkers have a view overlooking a gypsy caravan site at Rover Way in Cardiff. During the development of the footpath, the occupants expressed concerns over privacy.^[38]

Carmarthenshire section

The coast path passes through Pembrey Country Park. The number of people using the Wales Coast Path (October 2011 to September 2012) in Carmarthenshire was 19,537.^[39]

See also

• List of places along Wales Coast Path
• Long-distance footpaths in Wales
• Long-distance footpaths in the United Kingdom

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Wales Coast Path.

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Wales Coast Path.

• Wales Coast Path - official website, with 109 maps covering the entire path
• WalkingClub.org.uk - Wales Coast Path
• Countyside Council for Wales
• Natural Resources Wales
• YouTube footage of part of the Wales Coast Path

Long-distance footpaths and National Trails in Wales
Coastal footpaths & trails	Anglesey Coastal Path Ceredigion Coast Path Gower and Swansea Bay Coast Path Llŷn Coastal Path North Wales Path Pembrokeshire Coast Path South Wales Coast and Severn Estuary Coastal Path Wales Coast Path
Non-coastal footpaths & trails	The Beacons Way Cambrian Way Celtic Way Cistercian Way Clwydian Way Dyfi Valley Way Glyndŵr's Way Landsker Borderlands Trail Marches Way The Maelor Way Monnow Valley Walk Offa's Dyke Path Rhymney Valley Ridgeway Walk Taff Trail Usk Valley Walk Valeways Millennium Heritage Trail Wye Valley Walk