Sand Point & Middle Hope Circular Walk

sand point view

Sand Point & Middle Hope Circular Walk — Description

Sand Point and Middle Hope is a lovely stretch of coastline managed by the National Trust with beautiful views across to Wales and out to sea.

The walk around Sand Point and Middle Hope itself is around five miles and pleasant enough. But this walk extends it up through Weston Woods and back around through Kewstoke. This increases your walk to around ten miles and gives you a bit more to explore including a sandy beach and an iron age hillfort at the heart of Weston Woods.

The woods lead out into Kewstoke, a lovely little village with a couple of different options for refreshments if you need to stop before heading back towards the car park by way of the inland roads and bridleways.

Start from the National Trust’s Priory Car Park near Woodspring Priory where you can take a footpath up the steps and through a metal gate. This section isn’t very well signposted, but when you reach a small lake, take a left into the field and from here you can take various paths. Your best bet is to head through the fields towards the coast and follow it all the way to Sand Point.

Middle Hope is an incredible stretch of coast with interesting coves to explore if you don’t mind clambering over a few rocks to join the fisherman on the shore. If you prefer steadier ground, the fields along the coast are very pleasant, packed with sheep and their little lambs baaing away.

Upon reaching Sand Point you can enjoy stunning views out to sea and across to Wales before heading back on the southern side towards Sand Bay. There is lots of interesting flora to enjoy on this rocky peninsula such as honewort and smallflower buttercups as well as oxeye daisies and speedwell flowers in bloom.

Sand Bay really lives up to its name. While Middle Hope was all about rocky coves and interesting rock formations, Sand Bay presented a golden beach to stroll along. There were plenty dog walkers and families enjoying the sunshine as we stopped for a coffee and some homemade shortbread on the sandy beach.

The path through the woods follows the road quite closely, before you eventually reach the furthest point where you can turn back on yourself and head up to Worlebury Camp hillfort.

The hillfort dates back to around 600BC and is stone built which is apparently quite rare for hillforts in England. The fort was well defended with numerous walls, embankments and ditches around the site. Despite the defences, excavators found remains of skeletons with violent damage suggesting their deaths were a result of a vicious attack on the hillfort.

Once you’ve learned about the hillfort you can head back towards Kewstoke, stop for some refreshments or follow the roads and bridleways back to the Priory Car Park start point. The bridleways offer yet another contrasting experience on this walk. From the rocky coast of Middle Hope to the sandy beach of Sand Bay and the woodland path in Weston Woods, you can now enjoy a pleasant inland stroll through grassy fields flanked by the rhyne.

The terrain on this walk is very mixed. Under foot you will need to be prepared for fields, beaches, and woodland paths which could be muddy in bad weather. From Kewstoke, there is a little bit of road walking before you return back to the National Trust car park.

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Details
Elevation
117.79 m
Distance
16.14 km
Route Type
Circular
Difficulty
Easy
Under Foot
Mixed Paths
Car Parking
Free Parking
Key Features
Points of Interest
  • Sand Point — National Trust maintained and wildlife friendly natural pier.
  • Middle Hope — Wildlife friendly scrubland.
  • Worlebury Camp — Historic hillfort.
  • Sand Bay — Sandy beach.
  • Woodspring Priory — Former priory converted into a farmhouse and owned by the Landmark Trust.
Refreshments & Facilities
  • Food and drink refreshments available in Kewstoke
Guided Walk Notes
  1. From the car park, take a footpath up the steps and through a metal gate. This section isn’t very well signposted, but when you reach a small lake, take a left into the field and from here you can take various paths but your best bet is to head towards the coast and follow it all the way to Sand Point.
  2. Take the path on the southern side of Sand Point towards Sand Bay where you can follow the beach around to Weston Woods.
  3. Enter Weston Woods and follow the path alongside the road all the way to the furthermost point. Here you can take a left and head up towards the hillfort.
  4. From the hillfort follow the path through the centre of the woods towards Kewstoke.
  5. Exit the woods where you can stop for refreshments at a couple of different pubs or cafes in the village. Follow the roads out of the village heading northwards back towards the car park.
  6. Take the signposted bridleway off the road which will lead you back to the road which leads to the car park.
Date Published
29/05/2023