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General
Information
Duration
of tour: 15 days (14 nights)
Season:
30 March to mid October.
Starting
point: St Bees
End
of tour: Robin Hood’s Bay
Breakfast:
in the UK will generally consist of sausage, bacon, eggs etc, cereals
and fruit will also be available. It is important for you to tell us if
you have any dietary requirements when you book your holiday so that we
can inform everyone that you are staying with.
Baths:
it is not normal for your room to have a bath, the main reason being
that it takes up a lot of space, some hotels/guesthouses may have a
separate room in the house where a bath is available to guests, but in
the main it is showers.
Single
Supplements:
are payable on most of our tours. The single supplement guarantees the
privacy of your own room, however, rooms can at times be small and in
some places may not enjoy the same facilities as double/twin rooms.
Luggage:
When staying in hotels, sometimes your luggage will have been taken to
you room awaiting your arrival. However don’t be surprised if your
luggage is waiting for you to take it up to your room.
Getting to the Start
Convenient
Major city and international airport: Manchester Airport 4-5 hours
by rail via Carlisle.
Outward
journey from London: Train from London Euston to Carlisle. Then
local train from Carlisle to St Bees (1 hour 15 mins). Then short walk
from station to hotel.
Inward
journey to London at end of tour: Bus/taxi from Robin Hood’s Bay
to Scarborough. Then train from Scarborough to London. National Rail
website is www.nationalrail.co.uk
if you want to look at the journey involved.
Grading
Moderate to
Challenging. Some long days and steep climbs and descents. Generally
however undulating. Mixed weather can be expected. We would not
recommend the route for first time walkers. Note that often the trails
in the Lake District especially are steep and rocky at times.
Waymarking
Despite its
justifiable popularity, this is not a National Trail. Waymarking is
variable or erratic and you will have to use map interpretation for much
of the time, especially at times of low visibility, so you should be
accustomed to using map and compass.
Your Accommodation
Note
that the sheer popularity of this tour may mean that we cannot get you
into the accommodations described below for the dates of your tour. We
will endeavour to get you into a similar standard of accommodation
nearby, but please appreciate that there are limited accommodations.
Also, although we aim to get you into accommodations with ensuite rooms
this is not always possible at a couple of places on your tour you may
be sharing bathrooms.
q
Night 1: A
17th
Century sandstone barn situated on the main street in the coastal
village of St. Bees! The barn was initially converted in the 1980's into
a large guesthouse and self-contained flats, being recently refurbished
throughout. All rooms have a colour television and tea & coffee
facilities.
q
Night 2: Overnight
at a friendly family owned and run hotel, of three crown standard. Enjoy
a home cooked meal of local produce including fish and game in season. A
traditional feel is retained by the hotel, with its open fire, and the
fully licensed bar serves a range of beverages including locally
produced ale.
q
Night 3:
Tonight we stay in a small, and long established guesthouse. It is set
in a beautiful small hamlet town. A popular peaceful retreat for former
clients. Ensuite facilities are not available here as it is a listed
building that changes cannot be made to.
q
Night 4: Our small family run guesthouse is conveniently placed in the center of
this delightful village. Grasmere
is one of Lakeland’s most celebrated villages, and there is time
either this afternoon or tomorrow morning to look around and visit the
poet Wordsworth's home at Dove Cottage.
q
Night 5:
Tonight’s accommodation is popular with visitors and local people
alike since the early 1800’s. Many a tale could be told of events that
have taken place in all its lifetime, including the time when Wordsworth
was in our very bar as news arrived that Nelson had died at Trafalgar.
This is a listed building so the rooms are small, to change this
would spoil the character of this wonderful coaching inn.
q
Night
6: The proprietors will welcome you to their guesthouse in
the village of Shap. The village offers an interesting insight to the
history of the area, and the old Shap Abbey is nearby.
q
Night 7:
This accommodation has many unusual features, and is of an exceptionally
high standard. It is a Grade II listed Georgian town house full of
character, with a friendly relaxed atmosphere.
q
Night 8:
Accommodation in Thwaite is at a medium sized guesthouse, offering a
gateway to the Pennines "The Backbone of England".
Traditional Yorkshire fayre is served in an attractively
decorated dining room, and there are tea and coffee making facilities in
all rooms.
q
Night 9:
Formed from a terrace of traditional Cl6th miners' cottages, a peaceful
and comfortable hotel with courtyard and garden, renowned for its
cuisine.
q
Night 10:
The extremely picturesque North Yorkshire town of Richmond, with its
cobbled market square and Norman castle, is an ever-popular destination
for visitors. Our accommodation is in a small, very comfortable, guest
house within easy reach of all the sights in Richmond
q
Night 11:
Tonight's accommodation is set in an extremely picturesque village on
the edge of the North Yorkshire Moors.
All rooms are ensuite and have tea and coffee making facilities.
q
Night 12:
Tonight we stay in a wonderful guesthouse. All the rooms are very
spacious. There is a TV and tea & coffee making facilities in all
rooms.
q
Night 13:
Another listed building will be the accommodation for tonight.
Situated alongside the River Esk, the inn is actually mentioned
in the Norman Doomsday Book of the 11th Century, and the oldest part of
the building dates back almost as far.
Some rooms are en suite, and there is a TV and tea and coffee
making facilities in all rooms.
q
Night 14: Our
final night is spent in a large, cliff-top hotel. Magnificent views of
the bay are offered by the attractive dining room, in which is served
good home-cooked food. There are private and public bars, and a large
lounge in which to relax having completed the magnificent Coast-to-Coast
crossing of England. Rooms are spacious, with tea and coffee making
facilities available.
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The
Coast to Coast has been named among the world's best walks ahead of
world-famous hikes to the Inca Trail, Everest and Mont Blanc. It
came second in a search to find the 50 best walks in the world, it was
only behind the Milford Track, in New Zealand, according to
Country Walking magazine. Richard Baker, deputy editor of Country
Walking magazine, said a list of up to 60 walks was sent out to guide
book writers and other experts who came up with their top 50. He told
BBC News that he was not surprised at the popularity of the
Coast-to-Coast: "It has mountains, valleys, moors and lakes. There
is a great camaraderie on the walk. It also appeals to all people. It is
not an easy walk and you have to be fairly fit." Bill Scott, from
Vancouver, Canada, has completed the walk twice with his wife, and plans
to do it next year. He said: "I am surprised it is not first out of
the 50. What I know of walks throughout the world, the Coast-to-Coast is
second to none. "It has many different facets and is a cultural
experience as well as a physical and mental challenge. "The
cultural experience is typically British and specifically English. The
humour, the personalities and characters of the people you meet - they
have a style about them and an environment they generate themselves
which cannot be emulated anywhere in the world. But it is not a walk in
the park."
Outline
Itinerary
q
Day 1 St
Bees: Travel to starting point on the edge of the Irish Sea with
views across to the Isle of Man.
q
Day 2 St
Bees to Ennerdale Bridge: Footpath
along red sandstone coastal cliffs of St Bees Head and then inland over
hilly ground to the edge of the Lake District National Park (14 miles 6
hours. The day's total ascent 780m/descent 665m).
q
Day 3 Ennerdale
Bridge to Borrowdale: A quiet and scenic footpath along the shore of Ennerdale
Water lake to Black Sail and over the hills (1900 ft) to Borrowdale. (14 miles 8
hours. The day's total ascent 765m/descent785m).
q
Day 4 Borrowdale
to Grasmere: Classic Lakeland scenery over Greenup Edge to
Easedale and Grasmere (10 Miles 6 Hours. The day's total ascent
750m/descent 760m via Helm Crag)..
q
Day 5 Grasmere
to Patterdale: Over Grisedale Pass (2000 ft) and around the small
mountain lake of Grisedale Tarn to Patterdale (500 ft) (7miles 5½
hours. The day's total scent 900m/descent 805m via the recommended route
over St. Sunday Crag). Add 2 miles and 2
hours if include detour via Summit of Helvellyn. Add 1.5 hours for
detour of St Sunday Crag.
q
Day 6 Patterdale
to Shap: Past
Angle Tarn, over Kidsty Pike (2560 feet, the highest point on the whole
route) and along Hawes Water (home of England’s only nesting eagles)
(17miles 9 hours. The day's total ascent 1174m/descent 1009m).
q
Day
7 Shap to Kirkby Stephen: Easier going over limestone plateau
(18 miles 8 hours. The day's total ascent 808m/descent 950m) between the Lake District and Yorkshire Dales National Parks.
q
Day
8 Kirkby Stephen to
Keld or onto Thwaite: Across
Nine Standards Rigg (2170 feet) with its array of obelisks and down to
Keld in Swaledale with its many waterfalls (16 miles 8 hours. The day's
total ascent 780m/descent 575m to Keld).
q
Day
9 Keld to Reeth: Wild moorland with long-abandoned lead mines, a
magnet for the industrial archaeologist (14 miles 7 hours. The day's
total ascent 838m/descent 911m). There is also a pretty lower
alternative route via Swaledale if you have bad weather - or even if you
don't!
q
Day
10 Reeth
to Richmond: A
morning walk through pretty Swaledale lined with limestone crags on
either side, allowing time
in Richmond for shopping (note shops closed Sunday) and sightseeing in
Richmond whose Norman Keep towers above the Swale on one side and the
ancient cobbled market square on the other (10 Miles 4 Hours. The day's
total ascent 395m/descent 510m).
q
Day 11 Richmond
to Osmotherley: This is the longest and flattest day of the tour, bridging the gap
between the Yorkshire Dales and the North York Moors National Parks (24
miles 9 Hours. The day's total ascent 375m/descent 292m).
q
Day 12 Osmotherley
to Blakey: A strenuous day with repeated ascents and descents in the
Cleveland Hills, then across heather moors to Rosedale (21 miles 10
hours. The day's total ascent 1021m/descent 880).
q
Day
13 Blakey to Egton Bridge:
An easy descent to wooded Eskdale. The
latter part of today's walk follows a beautiful path through the
woodlands on the banks of the River Esk (10 miles 4 hours. The day's
total ascent 265m/descent 616m).
q
Day
14 Egton Bridge to Robin Hoods Bay: Across heather moors and along
coastal cliff path to Robin Hood's Bay. A village of red roofed
houses clustered around its harbour on the North Sea coast. This is the
end of the 190-mile crossing of England. (16 miles 7 hours. The day's
total ascent 775m/descent 770m).
PLEASE
NOTE: It is generally normal practice when staying in hotels that you
check-in on or after 2pm and checkout by 10am the following morning.
Guesthouses/bed & breakfast establishments are normally check-in on
or after 4pm and checkout by 10am.
Included
Bed
& Breakfast throughout. Ensuite facilities where available.
Luggage transfers from Inn to Inn. Full route notes and map package.
Extending Your Tour
It is
possible to shorten a long walking day by adding in an extra night
enroute. If this is something you are interested in doing then please
correspond with a member of staff and they will be happy to advise you.
Escorted Departures 2008
Sat 21 June
– Sat 5 July
Sat
20 Sept - Sat 4 Oct
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