Medmerry Nature Reserve
Children will love the beach and going inside The Periwinkle Shelter on this walk.
The Periwinkle Shelter at Medmerry Nature Reserve
The Basics
Time: 1hr 30mins
Distance: 5km
Terrain: Flat, paved or gravelled paths throughout or option to follow a grassy path that may be muddy
Pushchair: Yes, but it is stony track, so expect the ride to be bumpy
Dogs: On leads to protect the sensitive wildlife
Refreshments: None (hot drinks from RSPB Visitor Centre Pagham Harbour, 2 mile walk on footpaths or short drive)
Toilets: None (nearest at the RSPB Visitor Centre Pagham Harbour, 2 mile walk on footpaths or short drive)
Public Transport: The 51 service from Chichester Bus Station to Selsey stops outside Pagham Harbour Visitor Centre. From here you can access Medmerry by public footpath (1.8miles). The 52 Witterings service stops at the end of Clappers Lane, from there walk along Clappers Lane to Earnley Church where the reserve is signposted (0.7miles).
Parking: There are a few choices, but please note our directions start from Easton Lane. You can park at the Pagham Harbour Visitor Centre but this involves an extra walk of nearly two miles (Postcode: PO20 2NE). Earnley Car Park is the next biggest car park with a one mile walk into the reserve (Postcode: PO20 7JL). We chose Easton Lane Car Park for the quickest access into the nature reserve (Postcode: PO20 7JY - W3W: deflated/filer/magazines).
The sea wall path down to The Periwinkle Shelter
Medmerry Nature Reserve sits to the west of Selsey and provides a haven for coastal wildlife. There are beautiful views, hundreds of birds and miles of footpaths and cycle paths. A new addition is The Periwinkle Sculpture created by local artists and which reflects the rich archaeology of the area.
The Route
From Easton Lane car park, exit via the gate by the information board at the opposite side of the car park from the road. Walk for a few metres before coming out into a wide open space. There will be a choice of five different paths, but you should chose the paved, tarmac path ahead of you that veers slightly to the right. It passes a black bin on your left and then switches onto a gravelly surface. Go right when you see the finger post for the England Coastal Path.
Go through the wooden gate and continue. Go through another gate that states, ‘permissive footpath, no cycling or horse riding’. When the path splits, stick with the slightly better surfaced path to the left which will take you up to some benches on Easton Viewpoint. Look out for the soundscape by Splodge Designs that you can download via QR code.
From this point onwards, the path becomes grassy and sometimes muddy, so if you have a pushchair, we would recommend switching to the the wide permissive bridleway and cycle track that you will have seen down to your right. You can follow this all the way to the end of this walk with a pushchair as it is surfaced, flat and has no gates. It is stony, however, so could be a bumpy ride.
We continued along the sea wall path as it provides a slightly elevated position, so better views. At the end of the path you will come to the sea and a wild beach. Take care here as it has strong currents. You will also find The Periwinkle Shelter, which children will enjoy going inside and peeping out the windows.
For this walk, we re-traced our steps and returned the way we came. There is plenty more to explore at the reserve with paths and cycleways linking through to RSPB Pagham Harbour. We have attached a link below to the trails map:
Did you know?
RSPB Medmerry Nature Reserve is one of Europe’s largest coastal realignment schemes. A new 7km flood embankment helped to provide 183 hectares of intertidal habitat.
The inspiration for The Periwinkle Shelter came to artists Two Circles Design, from the archaeological excavations when the site was created. Evidence was found of a medieval fishing kettle woven from wickerwork with periwinkle shells inside.
If you enjoyed this walk…
…try The Discovery Trail at Pagham Harbour just a stone’s throw from Medmerry.
We are passionate about keeping The Ambling Path as a free resource available to everyone, forever. If you have enjoyed using our walking guides, then please consider leaving us a donation. This will help to cover our costs as well as rewarding the considerable time and effort needed to maintain the site. Thank you.
