32. Caer – Shotton; Chester – Shotton

32. Caer – Shotton; Chester – Shotton

Distance: 6.1 miles

Max Altitude: 21 m

Min Altitude: 1 m

Height Gain: 52 m

Height Loss: 45 m

I took a couple of days rest after finishing the Offa’s Dyke Path. I swam, I stretched, I ate. Bliss.

I also watched Wales beat Belgium to reach the semi finals of Euro 2016. Beyond bliss.

It was time to rejoin the path.

The Offa’s Dyke Path finished in Prestatyn. However, I needed to get to near Chester to rejoin the Wales Coast Path, having last seen it all the way back in Chepstow. I couldn’t wait.

What made it even more exciting was that my friend Eli had decided to drive all the way from London in order to walk with me. How nice it would be to have a friend to spend time with and to have a catch up.

Getting to the start of the Wales Coast Path proved to be a little more complicated than necessary. In Chepstow, the location is obvious by comparison. It’s marked out by sculptures and waymarks.

Even searching online didn’t give a conclusive answer to the northern WCP start. So after lots of googling and map consulting, we headed for Chester.

To make it easier for people having the same problem as we did, click here for a map of where you need to go to in order to join the Wales Coast Path.

The location is Sealand Rd in Chester. Find the small patch of parkland known as the Cop and follow signs to the path which hugs the River Dee. The map on the notice board at the Cop doesn’t feature the Wales Coast Path, but it is nearby! Near the river you will start to see waymarks pointing towards where the WCP starts.

After about 500 metres or so, the border between Wales and England is marked. Please somebody do something about this rather depressing sign!

Shortly afterwards, the official WCP start is marked out. It’s underwhelming in comparison to its equivalent in Chepstow.

Typically, as soon as we reached the official start, we got stuck in the heaviest downpour imaginable. In no time we were both drenched and walking in soaking wet shoes. Familiar for me, but not Eli. In about 20 minutes, it eased off, fortunately.

The path is long and extremely straight. You can see for miles ahead. The storm passed to reveal a stunning skyline over this albeit mostly industrial man made landscape.

We could see the Airbus factory to the side of us and Connah’s Quay Power Station way up ahead. In stark comparison, we saw a small bird of prey hovering near the path before it divebombed to capture a vole and then flew off with it.

We reached a blue girder bridge at Garden City. My left quadricep started to give off its familiar twanging pains. 


It was late evening so between one thing and another, we decided to call it a day and get to camp.

2 thoughts on “32. Caer – Shotton; Chester – Shotton

  1. I hope you’re well rested and ready for the North Wales Coast. I’m rather jealous that U have to go to work on Monday and can’t carry on along the South Wales cost. I’ll have to head back to Chepstow soon to tackle the coast path. Enjoy!

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