NOW A MAJOR FILM starring Gillian Anderson and Jason Isaacs · Over 2 million copies sold
Days after Raynor Winn learned that Moth, her husband of thirty-two years, was terminally ill, the couple lost their home and their livelihood. With almost nothing left and very little time, they made an impulsive decision: to walk the 630 miles of the South West Coast Path, from Somerset to Dorset by way of Devon and Cornwall.
They carried only what they could fit on their backs and slept wild, at the mercy of sea and sky. What began as a retreat became something else — a book about grief, homelessness, endurance and what the natural world gives back to people who have run out of other options.
Winner of the Royal Society of Literature's Christopher Bland Prize. Shortlisted for the Costa Biography Award and the Wainwright Prize for Nature Writing. Named by the Sunday Times in 2024 as one of the top 100 books of the past fifty years.
About the author
Raynor Winn writes about nature, homelessness and our relationship to the land. She is also the author of The Wild Silence and Landlines. Her books have sold over two million copies in English and been translated into more than 25 languages. She lives in Cornwall.
Edition details
- Penguin film tie-in paperback, 288 pages
- Published 22 May 2025
A note on the book: Since July 2025, parts of the account in The Salt Path have been the subject of press investigation and public dispute. The author has contested those claims and maintains that the book is a true story. We mention it so you can read with that context in mind.
