Walk 47 Shanklin to Yaverland and Wildheart Trust - 3 miles

This is a perfect walk in any weather, a flat, gentle stroll along the sea path from Shanklin to Sandown, ending at the Wildheart Trust, formerly the IOW zoo, but now a sanctuary for mostly rescued animals.

I started the walk in Shanklin town centre, joining the cliff path at the end of Clarendon Rd, before descending to join the sea path at Hope Beach.   

Passing the colourful beach huts, the path skirts the fine, sandy beaches of Lake and Sandown Bay, always popular with dog walkers. 

There are several cafes along the way, but my current favourite is Tradewinds, a touch of the tropics on the English coast.

Beyond the pier and seafront hotels we come to Yaverland and Wildheart Trust . It is a small facility but the animal care is exceptional and the visitor experience extraordinary, as you can get so close to the animals and watch them being fed and engaged in enrichment activities that mirror their life in the wild.

In their large, sandy enclosure, half a dozen meerkats guard their territory with their customary stance.

Recently arrived are a family of three Eurasian Lynx, Daenerys and her offspring Tyrion and Nymeria.

Also new to the sanctuary are two servals, Tafkap and Xirius, rescued from the illegal pet trade in France, where they were locked up in a bathroom and bedroom. Despite having broken and deformed bones from their time in captivity, they now trot happily around their large, grassy enclosure. The broadcaster Chris Packham has recently spearheaded a campaign to stop the breeding of servals with domestic cats to produce Savannah Cats. Read here.

But the main attraction is the big cats. Lion feeding demos take place most days and the cats are so comfortable with visitors that they can often be found lounging in front of their cages just an arm's stretch away.

 

This beautiful tiger is one of five rescued a few years ago from a Spanish circus.

Walk Details
Start: Clarendon Road, Shanklin bus stop
Finish: Yaverland
Distance: 3 miles
Time:  60 minutes
Bus: No 2,3,8 from Ryde or Newport
Refreshments/WC:Pubs,cafes in Shanklin/Sandown, public WC in crazy golf at Shanklin and by Sandown Pier, Yaverland and in Wildheart Sanctuary