E-Route 9 UK Section Plymouth to Dover

Devon, Dorset, E Sussex, Hampshire, Kent, W Sussex

The E9 starts at Cape St Vincent (Portugal) and is intended to finish at the Estonia/Russia border with sections in Spain, France, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, Poland, Latvia and Estonia.

The route of the E9 in the UK runs between Plymouth and Dover, thus allowing users to link up with a number of French ferry ports. There are ferry crossings between Plymouth and Roscoff; Poole and Cherbourg and St Malo (taking the Poole Harbour Trail from Poole Head); Portsmouth and Cherbourg, Le Havre and St Malo; Newhaven and Dieppe (taking the Sussex Ouse Valley Walk from Southease); between Dover and Calais.

Sir John Johnson (former LDWA President) and Jan Havelka (former ERA President) officially opened this E-route in the UK on 21st September 2002 at Poole, Dorset.

The E9 and its Isle of Wight variant comprise sections of existing LDPs, as follows:

South West Coast Path National Trail: Plymouth to Studland; Sandbanks Ferry; Bournemouth Coast Path: Sandbanks to Lymington.

From Lymington the E9 has mainland and Isle of Wight (IoW) variants.

Mainland variant: Solent Way: Lymington to Portsmouth.

IoW variant: Lymington to Yarmouth Ferry; Isle of Wight Coastal Path: Yarmouth to Needles; Tennyson Trail: Needles to Carisbrooke; local route: Carisbrooke to Newport; Bembridge Trail: Newport to Bembridge; Isle of Wight Coastal Path: Bembridge to Ryde; Ryde to Portsmouth Ferry.

Mainland variant (contd.): Solent Way: Portsmouth to Havant; Staunton Way: Havant to Queen Elizabeth Country Park (QECP); South Downs Way National Trail: QECP to Jevington; 1066 Country Walk: Jevington to Rye; Saxon Shore Way: Rye to Dover.

In 2023 it was decided that once the England Coast Path is fully open between Sandbanks (Poole Harbour) and Dover, this would become the main route of the E9 along the south coast of England, retaining the existing inland route from Havant to Rye as a variant.

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Details:

Path Type:	E Routes
Attributes:	E Routes Challenging Coastal
Start:	SX465539 - Plymouth, Devon
Finish:	TR326415 - Dover, Kent
Open Date:	2002

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