Walk · Devon

Hillsborough and Hele Bay

Ilfracombe · EX34 9QZ

1.4MILES

50mON FOOT

130mCLIMB

CircularSHAPE

The route A-road B-road Lane Track Path Water Woodland

Off-road 88% 12% shares tarmac with cars

Field & moor path 80%Lane & track 8%Road with traffic 12%

Our drawing of the route, over road and path data from OpenStreetMap. It shows where the walk goes and what it goes through. It is not a survey and not a navigation aid — carry OS Explorer on the hill. Off-lead information here is what walkers reported or what signage allows — never our advice. Whether and when a dog is off the lead is the owner’s decision and legal responsibility; keep dogs under control near livestock and follow signs on the day.

Starts at

Hele Bay car park, off Hele Road east of Ilfracombe harbour EX34 9QZ

Parking

Pay-and-display at Hele Bay, about 50 spaces, fills by midday in season; on-street parking nearby is residents only

Directions to the start →

A short but stiff 1.4 miles round the Iron Age hill the town calls the Sleeping Elephant, three quarters of an hour with 130 metres of climbing on coast path and footpath that goes rocky, slippery and muddy in patches. Start at Hele Bay car park just east of Ilfracombe harbour, where the number 3 and 3a buses from Barnstaple stop 100 metres up Hillsborough Road, and take the stepped path up from the beach. Dogs do well here because Hele Bay itself is not covered by the North Devon beach order and there are dog-friendly pubs at the bottom, though the summit paths run close to unfenced cliff edges and the woodland stretch is steep enough that a big dog on a lead will pull you off balance.

House rules, decoded

Off-lead allowed

REGION · DEVON

GRID · 51.2105, -4.1120

SOURCE · HTTPS://WWW.SOUTHWESTCOASTPATH.ORG.UK/WALKSDB/104/

Know one we have missed?

Tell us the pub we have not walked into yet.

Local knowledge beats desk research every time. Name the place and we will check it properly — the venue's own policy, confirmed, then stamped and dated like every other listing.

Wagfinder Members

Your patch, watched for you.

£4.99 A MONTH · OR £48 A YEAR

Restriction alerts for your saved beaches — know before the ban starts, not at the slipway sign.

New-place notifications in your area, the day we stamp them in.

Member perks at claimed venues across Britain.

Become a member

ENTER DOG OF THE MONTH · RESTRICTION ALERTS · CANCEL ANY TIME

Hillsborough and Hele Bay

House rules, decoded

11 The Quay

Acorn Lodge

Adele's Café and Sandwich Bar

Cottages you can book near Ilfracombe

Tell us the pub we have not walked into yet.

Get the new stamps first.

Your patch, watched for you.