COAST TO COAST WALK

This guidebook describes the Coast to Coast walk popularised by Wainwright. The walk from St Bees Head in Cumbria to Robin Hood’s Bay on Yorkshire’s east coast is now one of the most popular long-distance walks in Britain. At 178 miles (300km) long, the trail can be easily walked within a two-week holiday period.

The route is based on permitted rights of way and minimises the amount of road walking.

The Guide is in Three Sections

• The first gives the route description, from west to east, annotated with notes of geological, historical, industrial and sociological interest, together with information on natural history
• The second section gives the route description only in an east to west direction, cross-referenced to the points of interest
• The final section comprises a description of variant routes and lists some useful addresses

From the Introduction

Credit where credit is due: when in 1973 Wainwright devised his Coast to Coast Walk across Northern England, it was a masterpiece of inspiration, a touch of genius – if not of concept, then of line – and it would be difficult if not impossible to link the two chosen ends by a more satisfying route.

It is a tantalising and inspiring excursion, to rank with the finest of this country's long-distance walks. The man himself said it was but one coast to coast walk – that walkers could devise their own. Maybe so, but as a tribute to its quality its enthusiasts grow by the year, while 'alternatives' remain pale and few in comparison.

The walk runs as close to ruler-straight as Wainwright could devise, from the Irish Sea lapping the shores of Cumbria at St Bees, to where the waters of the North Sea flow into Robin Hood's Bay on the Yorkshire Coast, a distance of just over 300km (190 miles).

It's certainly not a walk on which to cut one’s teeth as a backpacker (the Dales Way or even the West Highland Way would be much more fitting for that), but one on which seasoned walkers will experience little difficulty.

Details

• Softcover
• 238 pages
• ISBN: 9781852845056