Coast to Coast, UK – 2002
In August and September of 2002 the Carrot and I, along with other members of the Hough clan, walked across England. We followed the “classic” route, pioneered by the late Alfred Wainwright in the 1970’s, from St Bee’s Head to Robin Hood’s Bay.
The “Rovers” all met up in the Hough Clan’s ancestral home town of Chester and chased ghosts for a couple days. Then we took the train to the town of St Bees on the Irish Sea coast.
The route crosses three national parks: The Lake District, The Yorkshire Dales and The North York Moors. The distance is about 190 miles, give or take some for mud or side trips to the pubs along the way, and ends in the town of Robin Hood’s Bay on the North Sea. Some people do it in as few as 12 to 14 days, but we took 22 days in order to enjoy more stops along the way and more days off. We spent 18 days hiking and had four layover days built into the schedule.
Most walkers prefer to travel from West to East, which is the direction we chose, to keep rain and wind at the back (nice theory, but doesn’t really work). The guidebooks are easier to follow in this direction and Robin Hood’s bay makes for a nice finish.
Each day we walked from village to village over trails, public pathways, open moors, pastures, farm lanes and back roads. The route ranged from well marked with signs to very indistinct with previous footprints scattered and obscured. During the day we carried only a light day pack with lunch, thermos of tea, camera, and weather gear. We spent the nights at B&Bs, eating the evening meals at the local pubs. “Sherpa“, a Van Service, transferred light baggage for us each day between B&B’s. We selected the specific accomodations based on recommendations from friends who had previously hiked this trail as well as suggestions from the “Coast to Coast Bed and Breakfast Guide” published by Doreen Whitehead Booking the accommodations was greatly simplified by using “Spotlight Guides” a booking service who performed flawlessly and inexpensively. For more information on these services click on the links above or see our resource page.
The trip was very successful and rewarding for all. We have great memories of that wonderful experience. We not only enjoyed each others company, but also saw a lot of beautiful scenery. Along the way we met a lot of interesting people, stayed at a lot of interesting B&Bs, visited a lot of nice pubs, and ate and drank good food, good ale. And there was an occasional wee dram of Scotch Whiskey every now and then.
Another classic adventure……………..
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