Beaches in South West England
Porlock Weir Beach, Nr Minehead, Somerset
A pebbly four mile long beach of archaeological and geographical significance
Popular for swimming, fishing, surfing and sailing - although care needs to be taken when swimming, and surfing should only be undertaken by experienced surfers.
Weymouth Central Beach, Weymouth, Dorset
Award winning beach that provides a unique and all round visitor experience
The beach consists mainly of fine sand with shingle and pebbles at the north end, 40 metres to 150 metres in width on mean tides and approximately one mile in length. Mainly a Georgian seafront, with the beach adjacent to the town centre and harbour.
Little Perhaver Beach, Nr St Austell, Cornwall (South Coast)
A small sandy beach that’s sheltered by harbour walls
This is a small family beach at the heart of Gorran Haven. Fishing and sight seeing trips are available from the sea front and it’s also possible to walk to the neighbouring beach at low tide.
Porthluney Cove Beach, Nr St Austell, Cornwall (South Coast)
A sheltered sandy beach close to Caerhays Castle Estate
This is a quiet family beach with fairly safe swimming and a ban on motorised craft to maintain to the peace and quiet. It’s part of the Caerhays Castle Estate and the gardens may be visited in the early part of the year.
Chesil Beach, Portland to Abbotsbury, Dorset
Chesil Beach is 18 miles (28 kilometres) long and, on average, 200 metres wide and rises to 14 metres height. It is a shingle tombolo connecting Portland to Abbotsbury and then continuing westwards to West Bay near Bridport. It is the largest tombolo in the UK.
Pebbles are graded in size from fist sized near Portland to pea sized at Bridport. The pebbles are a mix of flint and chert, with some quartzite pebbles from Buddleigh Salterton. The origin of the beach continues to be argued over with some proposing it is actually two beaches. The stretch from West Bay to Abbotsbury appears to have different characteristics to the stretch from Abbotsbury to Portland.
