The weather has started to get warmer but is still proving quite changeable for our walking groups but as you will read below, this hasnt stopped the CPC team getting out on the Path, with some new groups as well as the development and growth of existing groups. All of this is supported by our team of amazing volunteers (who we will be celebrating more in this month’s Volunteer week) who have also been honing their skills with our online workshops in bird and insect identification, with more training sessions planned over the next few months.
North Devon
Despite the pretty awful weather, participation in walks has been consistently good with only one walk cancelled due to high winds. Participants have enjoyed the coming of spring and walks have been organised to make the most of the spring flowers such as snow drops and bluebells as well as butterflies and nesting birds.
Walks are also becoming a little more adventurous for some groups. Many walkers are looking for something new and a bit more remote and wild. We have recently explored more isolated areas such as Halstone Down, Brownsham Woods, Blackchurch Rock and Spekes Mill which are a bit more off the beaten track.
Image: Ilfracombe Friendship and Social Group
Two new walking groups are due to commence in partnership with Sunrise Diversity in Barnstaple and Bude Carers. These will be monthly walks throughout the summer and participants are really looking forward to getting out on the coast path.
Dorset
As the path has finally started to dry out (in some places!) we have managed a few more adventurous walks with some of the Dorset groups recently. It is lovely to see the progress being made by the participants. Having requests for routes that will ‘challenge them’, and then seeing them do an amazing job of walking them, is wonderful.
Image: David Ellis charity group above Kimmeridge
We are also enjoying seeing the changing wildlife as the spring has developed, with lots more birds and many wild flowers along the path. We have been delighted by the songs of skylarks and the nesting colonies of guillemots, and even saw a pair of white-tailed sea eagles, which was a first for me. We have also loved seeing the changing flowers, with blackthorn blossom giving way to hawthorn, and then a carpet of colour in the meadows alongside the path, including a beautiful bee orchid this week.
Image: Bee orchid
Plymouth
As spring unfolded in Plymouth, our walking groups have embarked on more coastal adventures, exploring the path between Wembury and Whitsand Bay. Regardless of the unpredictable weather, it’s been great to see people turn up to share their love for the outdoors and meeting people.
Our open walks, guided by a team of local volunteers, have flourished. Now, we offer two walks each month (one during the week and another on weekends) for those seeking a gentle, supported stroll. These walks take us a little farther from Plymouth, providing an excellent opportunity for those with growing confidence to challenge themselves. In collaboration with Improving Lives Plymouth, the Plymstock Plodders group has also transitioned to being entirely volunteer-led.
During May, we were happy to extend our support to the University of Plymouth by providing walk leader training for two members of staff from their student wellbeing department. Over the past year we have been delivering monthly guided walks and hope that this training will provide the staff members with the skills needed to carry forward their own walks. This has been a great collaboration to promote health and wellbeing for young people living in the city.
Cornwall
When we started this project I was passionate about sharing our wonderful coast path with as many people as possible. The term coast path itself brings up images of high cliffs and sandy paths. Not something that all wheelchair users would be comfortable with, but early in the project we linked with Cornwall Rolling Ramblers.
Our monthly Wheelchair Rambles have travelled Cornwall, from Botallack in the West right across to Newquay on the North Coast and Falmouth on the South. By partnering with the team at Cornwall Rolling Ramblers, they advise us on suitable routes and locations, then we open the walks up to anyone in a wheelchair.
There are some fantastic accessible routes in Cornwall, most notably the amazing work the National Trust has carried out at both Botallack and Kynance Cove which we visited recently.
Feel free to reach out on jack@southwestcoastpath.org.uk if you are interested in finding out more.
Torbay
Being reliable and consistent is hugely important in so many spheres of our world, and as providers of walking opportunities, this is no different. When working with people who have additional barriers to accessing physical activity interventions, we can’t expect people to attend, just because we’ve put on an event. That’s where the Coast Path Connectors model comes in. We’re identifying people’s barriers and doing our best to address them. Transport issues, physical health challenges, self-confidence and the challenges of not knowing what to expect are some of many potential barriers for people, so it is no wonder that people sometimes need time before joining a group. This is where reliability and consistency prove so important. People know we’re here regularly, and that they can come, and be welcomed, whenever they feel able. Having started with relatively low numbers of walkers in Torbay, this groundwork has now started to pay off. Spring has seen nearly all of our groups grow in number dramatically, and it’s certainly not down to good weather!!!
This article is the eighth bi-monthly update on the Coast Path Connectors project. Read our recent updates below:
Coast Path Connectors Spring Update 2023
Coast Path Connectors New Year Update
About the Coast Path Connectors Project
Thanks to funding from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, the Coast Path Connectors project aims to open up coastal walking to a range of new audiences. This project will help improve equity of access along the South West Coast Path by supporting local people in making the most of our amazing trail, for their health and well-being, through a network of new volunteers.
MORE INFORMATION
Email: Coast Path Connectors Project Manager, Alex Turner at alex@southwestcoastpath.org.uk
Website: www.southwestcoastpath.org.uk/Get-involved/coast-path-connectors/
The South West Coast Path 