Tuesday 8th September 2026

We went rogue today and did the walk back to front – mixing it up a bit!! We caught a train into Chichester and then hopped on a bus just outside the station which took us all the way down to Bracklesham Bay. This was a point we had finished off at in October last year and our abiding memory of it was enduring 1.5 miles of walking on pebbles at the end of a 16.5 mile walk. We very much hoped that our 11 mile walk back to Bosham today was going to be an easier terrain.

It seemed God was paying me back for moaning about the heat over the last few days as today was the opposite – continuous rain and quite a chill wind. Our weather forecasts were telling us that it was due to clear up in a couple of hours though so we strode on confidently, believing we would soon dry out. For the first time in ages, Steve wore his leather hat which is generally part of his wet weather walking gear, but today he said that either his head had got bigger or the hat had shrunk – he felt like it was just perching!!

It seemed luck was on our side as the Coastal Path signs immediately led us around the houses of Bracklesham Bay rather than on the pebbled beach and we were loving that – until a sneaky path led us unexpectedly onto the dreaded pebbles. It wasn’t too bad however, although they continued for some distance they were interspersed with concrete and grass areas at points, and we managed. Better at the beginning of the walk while our legs were still fresh.

And despite the rain it was a really pleasurable walk. The pebbles gradually changed to shingle and then to sand – in fact black sand which I’ve never come across in this country before. In parts we walked in woodland running alongside the beach, very pretty and varied. When the path hit sand dune territory at East Wittering we hotfooted it down to the harder sand at the shoreline. It’s always lovely to find ourselves on a long stretch of sandy beach and we enjoyed this all the way to West Wittering where a Lifeguard recommended that we take to the higher path.

From West Wittering to West Itchenor the Coastal Path was varied and well signposted. Unbelievably, the house appreciation took on a whole new level today. The whole spread of this coastline has got to be extremely affluent, some properties literally took my breath away. Later I discovered some of the local residents include Kate Winslet, Keith Richards, Nicholas Lyndhurst and Michael Ball. None of them popped out to say hello however!

At just 7 miles we reached Itchenor – it was still raining. We easily found the Ferry and its very friendly Ferryman who whizzed us across Bosham Deeps (officially part of the Coastal Route), saving us an extra 10 mile walk. We were only his second customers of the day, think he was glad of the company.

Miraculously, the rain stopped for about 20 mins, just as we reached the other side. There was a bench perfectly placed for us to finally have our lunch – so we tucked in to re-energise for the remaining 4 miles of rambling.

Although the path was well marked out it was a bit slip slidey with mud and wet seawood – it was a little close at times but we managed to stay upright. And then we reached the extremely picturesque village of Bosham – luckily the tide was out so we could cut across the shallows.

We clocked up 11 miles of walking today and for some reason I found it quite manageable. I think it’s taken me a few days to get into the swing and maybe because it was cooler it didn’t feel such a task. But we were pleased to get back to our Airbnb for a hot shower, dry clothes and a good old cup of tea.

We achieved the completion of the gap – it turned out to be just 46 miles and that’s what we’ve walked in the last 5 days. This means we’ve done the whole of the Hampshire and West Sussex coastline, another big tick.

Later in the month we’ll be back on the Coast Path from Morecambe heading North – just enough time to rest our weary feet!

Another two days of Rose rambling to report on …

Sunday 6th September 2026

Not the best start in that our bus was cancelled but we eventually got on a No. 700 (extremely busy) bus, disembarking at the top of the village of Prinsted. We walked down its very pretty lanes to the Thorney Island Coastal Footpath.

We were immediately faced with a locked gate as the island is MOD property, only allowing visitors to stick to the official Coast Path which is fenced off around the perimeter. We had to press a buzzer and listen to the rules and regulations before the gate was opened for us to get on our way. Seemed like a nice man, hope he had other jobs to do as there weren’t too many walkers about!

We had glorious views the whole day, waterways, mudflats with plenty of seabird activity, pretty sailing boats and even a section of sand dunes with perfectly white sand. The white sand beach was our picnic spot for the day – it felt like being in the Caribbean!

A little further on we came across St. Nicholas Church, a stunning Norman building which now serves the small island population, largely made up of British Army personnel and their families. Considering this, there was surprisingly four large graveyards, two of the older ones we walked through as part of the Coastal Path.

Now, I’m not one to moan, but as the day went on it got hotter and hotter! It’s like the island had its own sub-climate and heatwave! Made us realise that we were wise not to attempt walking during this recent summer’s extreme temperatures. Even with the coastal breezes it felt pretty stifling at times. At least we had plenty of water and foraged sweet blackberries as we wended our way.

At 7 miles we had completed the island circuit and buzzed our little man again to open the gate. We had then arrived in the town of Emsworth. We still had a further 3 miles from here to finish at Langstone, the start of Hayling Island. We suspected it might be road walking but in fact it was a very pleasurable waterside route the whole way.

At just on 10 miles, and almost 4pm, we arrived at The Ship Inn, Langstone where we had booked a table for an early dinner with our lovely friend Bridget, who had driven down from Crowborough to meet us. We all enjoyed a delicious chicken and leek pie in their upstairs restaurant … and they didn’t mind our walking attire!! It was lots of fun, lots of chatter and a little over zealous consumption of wine and beer (mostly Steve!!!). It was great to spend that time with Bridget who kindly stayed sober to drive us weary and ‘tiddled’ ramblers back to our airbnb, before setting off on her own long journey. Just can’t believe we forgot to take a photo – too busy nattering.

Monday 7th September 2026

Today’s plan was to walk from Prinsted to Bosham, an 8 mile walk largely circumnavigating Chichester Harbour. We again started at Prinsted waterfront, today walking to the left. A beautiful walk through Prinsted village again and now on the coastal path out there were equally stunning houses with their large windows overlooking their extensive rolling lawns down to the water edge. Not jealous at all – just making a comment!

It was a day of flat paths – a mixture of shoreline, sea walls, farm fields and quiet lanes. Paths were a little rocky in places – plenty of stumbling opportunities. We started out with some ugly looking grey clouds and even a little drizzle but mostly it turned out to be just the right temperature for walking – warm with a cool breeze.

Many years ago, in my late twenties, I sailed from this Harbour to the Isle of Wight. My lovely ex-boss (John Leighton) moored his yacht here and invited me and two others to join him on a sailing weekend. Walking alongside it today brought back wonderful memories. Another equally lovely ex-boss (David French) had lived on Hayling Island and he has been very much in my thoughts the last few days also.

When the Coastal Path diverted us off the sea wall onto farmland it felt considerably hot again, being more sheltered from the sea breeze. The farm paths were long and dry but it was a wonderful spectacle to see and smell some healthy looking vegetables – kale, cabbage, beetroot, cauliflowers, leeks and pumpkins. The soil looked rich too although we did see some evidence of some planting not having survived the summer temperatures.

Another day of no toilets or cafes but we had our one little lunchtime picnic break on a bench with a view. Steve voted for cutting a mile off the end and adding it to tomorrow’s walk and who was I to argue!! Just made sense logistically and we were soon on the 700 bus back to Havant.

So, 7 miles of walking with a late start and an early finish. A good chance for me to catch up on blogging and for Steve to have an afternoon kip. Our last walk tomorrow now stands at 11 miles rather than 10 – did we make a wise decision!? Let’s see. x

Our guestimate for the Hayling Island coastal walk was 16 miles so Steve came up with a plan to split it across two days as our first two days were essentially going to be afternoons only – Friday as we first had to make the journey down from Milton Keynes plus find our Airbnb accommodation and Saturday due to our beloved Parkrun being the first item on the list!! We’ve based ourselves in Havant with the intention of closing a 55 mile gap between Hayling Island in Hampshire and Bracklesham Bay in West Sussex. It’s a bit like finding those elusive edge parts in a jigsaw puzzle.

Friday 4th September 2026

The trusty No.30 bus took us from Havant Bus Station to Northney where we started our walk to the south of the Island. For this section there had been no evidence of an official coastal path on the ordnance survey maps but as it turned out there was indeed a path and it had exceptional signage for the whole of the route. A whole mixture of terrain, some estuary paths, country lanes, a bit of road here and there, all perfectly manageable.

The weather was mostly overcast but it was still warm, in fact pretty hot at times. Having eaten breakfast at 7.30am we were getting peckish by midday and desperately seeking out a bench to sit and have our sandwiches, 5 miles in and still no bench! Then we came upon a parked up flat bed truck which made for a perfectly comfortable picnic spot. The chicken & cranberry sandwiches hit the spot and, after nourishment, on we trooped.

We saw some wonderful houses en route and got a lovely feel for Hayling Island life with its sailing clubs and marinas. Quite a mixed demographic though I’d say as some parts felt somewhat less salubrious. At 8 miles we hadn’t reached our destination – it was a further two miles than we’d bargained for, oh joy. When we saw the shingle our hearts sunk – not again! But luck was on our side as there was a promenade – that bonus two miles could have been oh so worse.

Our destination for today was the Hayling Island Light Railway. On reaching it, we rewarded ourselves with 2 scoops of salted caramel ice-cream and a much needed sit down before catching the bus back to Havant … 10 miles in the bag.

We’re staying in a very comfortable airbnb (no house-sits available) but there are no cooking facilities – just a kettle and a toaster. This meant that rather than lounge around in our pyjamas we had to get dressed and go out to find sustenance. We happened upon a huge Wetherspoons called “The Parchment Makers” and, trying to stick to budget living we gave it a go. Successfully installed ourselves in a quiet corner and ate and drank at bargain prices. Even looked up the history – parchment making was once an important industry in Havant and parchment from here was used for the Treaty of Versailles. We had a little wander around the town on our way back, very pretty in parts. The sky was unbelievable – pink sky predicts a sunny day tomorrow – yippee!

Saturday 5th September 2026

Up with the lark and straight to Havant parkrun which was in Staunton Park, just a short bus ride away. Can recommend it as a run as it was very scenic but, being a gravel path it was not so comfortable underfoot, plus there were steep downhill slopes and matching uphills. Another one ticked off though.

We had a late breakfast back at our Airbnb to set us up for the day’s walk – hoped it would sustain us till dinner time and give us sufficient energy for our 8 mile walk. Packed some mini pork pies in my rucksack in case of emergency!

We got the same bus to the same bus stop as yesterday – today we walked to the right, walking the other side of Hayling Island. The coastal path signs were great again and it immediately took us on the “Billy Trail” – a disused railway line – pleasant paths with waterside views. As yesterday evening’s skies had predicted, today was blue skies and sunshine. Lots of conservation areas, oyster beds and plenty of birdlife. Being a Saturday we were accompanied by many walkers and numerous cyclists – lovely to see families out enjoying this wonderful weather and location.

After enjoying the luxury of the Billy Trail for some time, those pesky King Charles III Coastal Path signs veered us off in another direction, taking us on a much bigger loop. But all was not lost as we walked through some glorious residential areas, house envy alert!! Some magnificent residences – period, modern, coastal, country – all individual and just oozing style. This led us down to the beach where we had a lovely long stretch of shore walking, listening to the waves lapping and soaking up the seawater aroma. Some more stunning beach facing properties too.

The final mile felt like a slog but we had the “Islander” light railway train to entertain us. And then we were back to where we finished off yesterday …. 8 miles today. And we can confirm that the Hayling Island Coastal Path is 18 miles.

Finished off the day with fish and chips, lashings of tea, a blog …. and an early night!

Tomorrow’s another day …. of walking! x