Portishead Beach

Shingle, not sand

Portishead is a town with a seafront rather than a beach resort. Portishead has no sandy beach, and the Lake Grounds were partly developed to compensate. Along Esplanade Road the shoreline is grass and shingle, and at low tide sandbanks and muddy flats are left uncovered.

Plan this as a seafront walk, not a day with a bucket and spade. For a pebble beach with a pier, try Clevedon Beach, further along the coast.

The Lake Grounds and Battery Point

The Lake Grounds sit on the inland side of Esplanade Road, facing the Bristol Channel across the road. They hold a boating lake, a cafe, tennis courts, a bowling green, play parks and public toilets. The town’s open-air swimming pool is on the Esplanade too, and beyond it lies Battery Point.

Battery Point has a navigational light that the Bristol Port Company maintains, on the point where ships pass closer to the mainland than anywhere else on the UK coast. The water off Battery Point is extremely hazardous because of strong currents and the high tidal range, and no swimming is allowed there. The rocks at Battery Point and Woodhill Bay are part of the Portishead Pier to Black Nore Site of Special Scientific Interest.

Along the shore to Sugar Loaf

From the far end of the Esplanade a cliff path leads past Kilkenny Fields to Black Nore Lighthouse, Sugar Loaf Bay and Redcliffe Bay, and on towards Clevedon. Sugar Loaf Bay is known locally as the Glass Beach, where people search the shore for polished glass.

Mud, tide and dogs

Treat the shore with respect. North Somerset’s seafront advice warns that soft sand and sinking mud can trap you. It says to check tide times and the weather, know where the exit points are and follow warning signs. If someone is trapped, call 999 and ask for the Coastguard.

On dogs, the council’s area orders require a lead on Portishead promenade and at the marina. Check the council’s dog rules and any signs on the shore.