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Friends of Langstone Harbour

Langstone Shoreline Trail

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Langstone Harbour boasts an excellent shoreline path around most of its 14-mile circumference complete with a quarter-mile public ferry linking the two ends. The footpath enjoys four popular pub/restaurants, 15 free car parks and many bus stops offering access to railway stations linking to London and the South Coast.

Langstone Harbour has half a million immediate neighbours in Portsmouth and Havant and is readily accessible by motorway or train to millions living in London or southern England.

Langstone Harbour is a Ramsar Wetland of international importance with SSSI and SAC designations. It is favoured by many wintering and all-year birds and deservedly by birdwatchers.

The entire harbour is visible from most of the shoreline path.

The Langstone Harbour shoreline trail can be walked in four hours and cycled in two. The Friends of Langstone Harbour take six hours for their annual walk round the harbour allowing time for lunch, sight-seeing and conversation.

Following completion of Portsmouth's northeast-facing coastal defences the shoreline footpath is now of mostly of truly excellent quality. Short sections of the path however remain tidal, presenting opportunities for improvement.

Although on the map Langstone Harbour resembles a circular pond, the shoreline path is best seen as an inverted triangle, Portsmouth City to the east, mainland to the north and Hayling Island to the east.

The Portsmouth Shoreline Trail from Eastney to Farlington (4 miles) is mostly of excellent quality. However the north shore of Eastney lake remains a tidal beach unsuitable for bicycles. Avoiding the tidal beach adds more than half a mile of uninspiring urban townscape to the path - and an opportunity for improvements.

The Mainland Shoreline Trail to the north (4.3 miles) is mostly of tarmac or grassy chalk. The recent seawall breach at Southmoor presents a new reality involving the total omission of the Budds peninsula, saving more than half a mile of what was scenic shoreline.

The Hayling Shoreline Trail to the east (5 miles) follows the Hayling Billy trail to the Station Theatre. The trail was designed and surfaced to Sustrans standards. The circular path is usually completed on quiet and residential roads to the ferry. Diversions are available which follow the meandering shoreline, round the Oysterbeds for instance and also to seaward of North Shore Road where the shoreline is tidal, skirting shoreline housing and past Sinah Warren holiday accommodation to rejoin the Ferry Road at the Kench.