The Cumbria Way: Day 6: Caldbeck to Carlisle

So the last day of the walk and a good distance to go but no significant ascent today. In fact it must be downhill on average as it follows the river into Carlisle and I know water doesn't flow uphill often!

The path sets off from the bridge over the river in Caldbeck although you have to look hard at the signs on the other side of the road to find the marker discs and there is an initial climb up into the woods to warm up with. The path drops back down to the river and paddles along the edge of a couple of fields to meet a road. Crossing the bridge over the river the path crosses the road and heads through the first overgrown farm gate on the left. I had to peer very hard at the disc marker for this one but the finger sign is clearly marked to Sebergham via St Mary's Church. The gravestones in the churchyard are 5 and 6 feet high. I couldn't see if any were from walkers of the Cumbria Way who had not made it. It has a lovely rose outside the entrance which I had to stop and smell after it wafted across the path.

Signposting is a bit variable around here and the path turns left opposite the church entrance down a farm road and eventually into a field of cows. 


Clearly I can't guarantee the cows for you, but if these particular ones are there, be warned they are inquisitive and protective of their calves and they escorted me up the lane and off the premises politely but firmly!

Arriving at Bell Bridge the path crosses back to the West side of the river and stays there all the way into Carlisle.The destructive power of the water is evident all along here with uprooted trees, damage to the river bank and evidence of flooding over the crops.

Look carefully and you can see the path disappearing over the edge where the bank has washed away. At Rose Castle and Rose Bridge the Cumbria Way has been rerouted along the river bank (my map shows it across the middle of fields) but the river has also cut the corner with a second channel so I had to divert through some farm gates tied up with binder twine to get to the bridge. The path continues across fields past Limehouse school and Hawksdale Hall. Here I was catching up with some diffident walkers who stopped at every sign and gate to consult their map and book and made hard work of every muddy patch. I didn't want to catch them up so compromised on a chocolate stop on a very large convenient tree stump a couple of fields before Bridge End.

Despite the news of severe flooding in parts of northern England and a horrible weather forecast, the day had turned out quite nicely. Definite sunhat weather.


There is a pub at Bridge End but it is on a fairly busy road so I passed on through Buckabank and into Dalston. 


At this stage I had a small problem.... I walked off the North edge of the map 3 miles from Carlisle. Maybe I should have taken a guide book!


Dalston turns out to be a pretty village with a nice looking pub and shops and I suspect a lot of people give it up here without troubling Carlisle but if you walk through the village on the road there is a very tiny Cumbria Way sign on a public footpath signpost next to the school pointing you towards Cummersdale. As you approach the river the path becomes tarmac (for cyclists) and this path can be followed all the way to Carlisle. It is hard underfoot, the best views have gone and my legs and feet were complaining by now. As well as the river the railway line accompanies you on the other side until finally the railway crosses the river by a bridge. When I was there there were two bulldozers in the river putting rocks back under the bridge that had been washed away by heavy rain the previous weekend. It turned out there was a fair amount of railway chaos over those days. 


Beyond the bridge the path joins a road briefly then continues between the river and a factory until the housing of Cummersdale comes into view. Keeping with the river path and eventually passing a weir, the Cumbria Way signs reappear on the lamp posts. Finally the path crosses the river on an old railway bridge and turns on to the road. They direct you up Castle Street, past the cathedral and to the Market Cross which is the official end of the Cumbria Way. 

There's no nice blue plaque at this end though. So you have to know it is the end, unless you read it on the steps of the Tourist Information office in the background as I did.


I was heading home by train which is a slow trudge up the hill past the citadel to the station. There was a huge queue here of people waiting for the delayed train to Euston. I was pleased to be on the Leeds train via Skipton which was not affected by the disruption.

So that was my Cumbria Way in 6 days. Many do it in 5, walking from Langdale to Keswick in one go.

It was a great walk, much better than I expected. I recommend it.

The Cumbria Way: Day 5: Braithwaite to Caldbeck

So an early start, partly because of the forecast of heavy rain by 10am. The clouds were moving away from the distant fells. It's about half an hour walk back through Portinscale into Keswick where the route has been changed from my 1997 OS map and now runs up through the main market area and then turns left towards the swimming pool. I played hide and seek the markers for a minute or so there before walking round the perimeter of a field to join the road at Briar Rigg and striking off North East towards and over the A66 by a footbridge and up into the woods. I wouldn't say I was going slowly at this point but an old man with two walking sticks passed me uphill (he also had a rucsac and headed up Skiddaw a few minutes later).        


The path is obvious from here on and contours along the valley and then heads steadily up towards Skiddaw House. It is more than 6 miles from Keswick to Skiddaw House and last time i was there in the mid 90s it was derelict. Now it's open as a youth hostel again but only if you walk or cycle there. It's also a campsite although I didn't see any tents there when i arrived mid morning. Walking up the valley there had been several mudslides on both sides of the valley. These were easy to cross but I would not want to be anywhere near when it happens.

At Skiddaw House (1550ft) there's a choice of routes for the Cumbria Way. Straight on takes you down by Dash Falls eventually to the road and then a long road walk to Caldbeck. Turning right however is a shorter  but higher route and it was always my plan to go this way despite some heavy showers. I rationalised this by noting that even in the rain the high level summits were still visible so while I might get wetter, at least I would see where I was going. Any anyway, who wants to walk on the road? Not me.

So it was off across the moor on a very wet path to eventually join the River Caldew. The path stays fairly well above it which is just as well because it had clearly been up over the banks in places. A seriously heavy shower had me putting my coat on for at least the 3rd time that day and looking up for reassurance that the tops were still visible. Three and half miles downhill from Skiddaw House took me an hour and a half to reach the end of an unclassified road at the bottom of Grainsgill Beck. You could still escape down the road here to eventually reach Hesket Newmarket but the sun was out and the highest point of the walk was imminent. So after a pork pie and an Eccles Cake I set off up Grainsgill Beck.

At the bottom there's a fair track and you can see the nick in the skyline which is Miller Moss, and a building to the right which isn't on my map. There are mine workings early on and then the path deteriorates somewhat, becoming wetter, less distinct and nearer to the beck. The climb is about 900ft altogether in about a mile so it isn't desperately steep. But on a wet Thursday in the wettest June on record it's very wet. And then it rained. Not streadily, but torrentially, without respite on an already saturated fellside. Every semblance of a path was a stream or a bog and every sidestream a waterfall to be crossed. It might not look too bad on the picture which is taken near the top, but what you can't see is the rain bouncing off the puddles and that I'm ankle deep in mud. Indeed at one point i was more than knee deep and relieved to get my foot out with my boot still on. But i reasoned that it would clear in the end and at least I could see. Well at least until the clouds snuck up the valley behind me and blotted out the view. After a very squelchy hour I reached the top of Miller Moss where there should be a crossing path. This was tricky to identify positively but i followed some suggestions of ruts with streams flowing down them and my compass bearing until I nearly walked into a large garden shed in the mist and rain. Helpfully it had a Cumbria way disc on the back, and a door on the front and this was Lingy Hut, a mountain refuge which was what I had seen from the bottom of the climb. Gratefully I stepped through the door and out of the rain. 


At this point the advantage of being a back packer was obvious; dry clothes and socks although almost everything in my pack was damp by now. And I sat there long enough for my trousers to dry out to some extent and to wait for the rain to stop. I was joined after a while by another Cumbria Way walker who had survived Grainsgill Beck and fancied eating his lunch out of the rain. As the visibility cleared, a couple passed by in the same direction. He said they couldn't get any wetter so they would carry on. She didn't speak but the look on her face suggested he was in trouble later! As the weather improved my shedmate set off and I left a few minutes later. I would like to thank the people who maintain Lingy Hut and other mountain refuges. It was not an emergency for me, but at other times it could be a life saver. I left my undrunk bottle of Cocker Hoop there in thanks, and for any poor soul who has to spend the night there. 

From the hut it is a short and easy walk (when you can see the way) to High Pike, 2158ft. It's the most northerly of the Cumbria 2000s and has a solid slate seat in a puddle next to the cairn and trig point.


The route is indistinct for a bit after this, but a compass bearing North brings you down the correct side of the ridge and down the right hand side of a stream by old mine workings. Every path leads you to Nether Row and on to a lane heading towards Caldbeck. I stayed at the Oddfellows Arms although there are other bed and breakfast places. There's no campsite on the map or in the village but Throstle Hall Touring Caravans site appears to take Cumbria Way walkers according to the website. The village shop has good fodder for campers and lunch.

The Cumbria Way: Day 4: Rosthwaite to Braithwaite

This was the shortest walk of the week. I chose to walk to Braithwaite instead of Keswick mainly because of the campsite I wanted to stay at. I learned later that Keswick campsite was flooded that night and they turned away everyone except backpackers. It was still drizzling when I left Rosthwaite but it gradually eased off as I left the village and headed along the river Derwent and into the woods. Everything was a shade of green, partly because of the light through the canopy of trees but also because of the moss, bracken, grass and lichen.

There's a campsite in the woodland which like several I saw during the week has yurts as well as camping. Passing the campsite a lane leads on to the road. Here the Cumbria Way is signed left but I decided to go right which is a short distance to Grange to look for a shop. Unfortunately there isn't one although there are two cafes and a couple of nice houses for sale! After a short distance along the road the path comes back in from the left and I headed across open but boggy fields down towards the lake.

By now I was used to looking for these green and yellow waymarkers but sometimes there are too many as here! As well as the two in the picture there was one on the back too. I think it was just a short variation of the route but this is not a place where anyone is really going to get lost.

Derwentwater was quiet that morning and the path winds through woodland near the bank with a brief visit to the road near the foot of Catbells. I had considered a different route from Rosthwaite up through the Rigghead quarries and over High Spy and Maiden Moor. The clouds were down on the summit though which saved me from having to admit my feet hurt too much to have attempted it anyway.

Finally the path joined the B road leading into Portinscale where the village shop does a better impression of a tea room. If you were going into Keswick you would have another half mile or so to go, but I turned left to join and cross the A66 towards Braithwaite. A footpath joins a minor road passing the Braithwaite Bridge campsite which was my destination, but the reception is at the Scotgate Holiday Park in Braithwaite half a mile further on. The extra distance is compensated for by the pubs in the village and a pint at the Royal Oak went down well. The general store promised much but delivered relatively little late in the afternoon. Don't look for the post office, it no longer exists. 

This is Braithwate Bridge campsite about half an hour after I arrived and pitched my tent. It's pretty peaceful. Another half hour saw 40 more tents erected courtesy of 4th Formby Scout group and at least two Duke of Edinburgh groups. 

I was woken by the rain at 1.15am, and by heavier rain at 4am. At this time of year that's nearly sunrise and by 6am there were plenty of campers up and about and not quietly either. So I joined in, packed up and was on my way at 7am.

The Cumbria Way: Day 3: Great Langdale to Rosthwaite (Borrowdale)

This is the view from the road near the Old Dungeon Ghyll Hotel looking up Mixenden towards Rossett Ghyll which is the nick in the skyline in the distance. Langdale is a beautiful spot which can be a problem at peak times as everyone turns up to have a go at the Langdale Pikes. The good news is the Cumbria Way doesn't head up Rossett Ghyll (which is heading towards Scafell) and takes the rather more modest Stake Pass.

The Cumbria way is rejoined next to the Old Dungeon Ghyll Hotel and winds along a fairly good track contouring the valley side towards where the paths for Rossett Ghyll and Stake Pass divide. The branch point is well labelled with some nice lettering and arrows on rocks and you can't miss it. This was the busiest part of my walk, mainly because there were at least 3 Duke of Edinburgh parties in the vicinity. Two of them were near the bottom of Stake Pass when I arrived and making slow progress, mainly due to the tendency to sit down every 5 minutes for a rest. In fairness it looked like they were carrying more than me but I would also guess a few of them were not practiced hill walkers either. I caught a sleeping bag that fell off a lad's pack and was gathering speed downhill until it fortunately arrived at my feet! Some way up, I passed one of the groups and was asked how much further it was to the top. I suggested we were about two thirds of the way there (which I thought was encouraging) and he said "That's so f**king demoralising!" which made me laugh a lot.

And like most ascents it comes to an end soon enough and you can look back at your work, in this case the view back into Great Langdale from where we had come.


At the top of the pass there's a wide flat saddle which you walk across to find the descent into Langstrathdale. There was a school party and a 3rd DofE party here as well as two men with a theodolite on a grassy knoll. All i'm saying is it isn't always secluded up there!

So this is the view down into Langstrathdale. Lang is Norse for "long" and it is well named. Not as full of grand features as Langdale but also no road, buildings or "civilisation" to spoil the view.











There's not much to say about the way down... except keep going!

The path keeps variable and amiable company with the Stake Beck as it descends.

 Eventually the Stake Beck is crossed by a foot bridge and joins Langstrath Beck. 

The higher fells up to the left as you descend the valley are Rosthwaite Fell, Stonethwaite Fell and Glaramara. I don't know which are in this picture!

Langstrath Beck gradually matures along the valley and near the confluence with Greenup Gill (which is where the Coast to Coast path heads off towards Grasmere) it becomes quite wide with beautiful green slate in the river bed and some pretty tree lined glades.

 As Greenup Gill joins the river changes again to Stonethwaite Beck which is a clue that civilisation (or at least a small hamlet) is around the corner. The path stays on the East (right) side of the river although there's a perfectly good alternative on the other side which would be sensible if you were heading to the Stonethwaite Farm campsite, or even the Langstrath Hotel. I stayed on the Cumbria way and crossed the river by a farm bridge and doubled back to the Langstrath .

I had tried to book to stay here but it was full. The notices on the blackboard on the wall told me the bar was open and it was a welcome pint.

The plaque beneath says "In loving memory of a sunny day in Borrowdale".

Rain or shine, Borrowdale is beautiful and tends to attract less people than Langdale. For serious walkers it's within reach of Scafell and Great Gable and my favourite summit of Dalehead. There's plenty of industrial history too, mainly mining for precious metals (even gold), and of course the Honister slate quarry.

After a rest I recrossed the river and continued along the Cumbria way to Rosthwaite about a mile away where I stayed at the Scafell Hotel and ate in the Riverside Bar which i recommend.

And maybe it was good luck because it rained really heavily most of the night and I don't envy the campers as i soaked in the bath!

The Cumbria Way: Day 2: Coniston to Great Langdale

Morning in Coniston and very quiet along the lakeshore. The water level was clearly higher than normal as most of the landing stages were partly submerged. I had breakfast at the Bluebird Cafe overlooking the lake, and then walked into Coniston for supplies.

Back on the path it's a short and easy road walk to start with, then through fields and up into the woods towards Tarn Hows. It's a steep climb.

Maybe not looking its best in the cloudy conditions but the path passes along the west side heading North. The Cumbria way path isn't signposted off the lakeside path at the moment. If you get to a gate at the North end, you went too far (as I did) and need to turn back to the first turning on the right.

Shortly it joins a farm track and then a lane back to the main road and then a path in the field alongside the road to a woodland. This takes you down a lane alongside the wood to a farm where footpath and bridleway signs direct you towards Skelwith Bridge.

The path runs well marked through woodland and eventually nears the road. I carried on to Skelwith Bridge to eat my lunch by the river, decided against a pint in the Talbot Bar of the Skelwith Bridge Hotel and took the path back up alongside Chesters (which used to be the slate mine shop) to rejoin the Cumbria way by the river. However the signposted path now misses out Skelwith Bridge and crosses the river a little upstream by a metal footbridge instead. Then it's up the riverside path through fields towards and past Elterwater. There was plenty of evidence here of recent flooding with debris halfway up the field fences suggesting the river had been a good 6 feet higher at least.

I can't guarantee you will be lucky enough to find this ice cream seller at Elterwater Bridge but I can tell you the ice cream was very welcome.

There is also the Britannia hotel opposite for the thirsty ones.

The path crosses the bridge at Elterwater (the picture is looking up Great Langdale Beck) and heads up the lane and it's now an easy walk on the South (left) side of the river for the next mile or so.

Heading up into Great Langdale the path does climb fairly steeply away from the river and becomes fairly rough underfoot.

But it is worth it for this first view of the Langdale Pikes (the castellated one to the left is Harrison, the highest) and then the path descends again and crosses the road near the New Dungeon Ghyll Hotel.

I continued along the Cumbria way (now on the right hand side of the river and road) to the Old Dungeon Ghyll Hotel. If neither of the hotels are your destination and you are staying at the Great Langdale campsite (NT) as I did, then you have to double back up the road for about 100m or so to the entrance. I arrived on Monday in June and there was plenty of room. You can't book ahead at NT campsites for one night and I know it can be very busy there on a weekend. There is another campsite at Baysbrown farm which is between Elterwater and the New Dungeon Ghyll hotel. The Cumbria way goes right past it. If you stayed here, you would be a few minutes walk from the Wainwright Inn at Chapel Stile too which has served me well in the past.

The Cumbria Way: Day 1: Ulverston to Coniston

First of all, this is not a guide to the Cumbria Way. It's just my account of the walk with a few pictures along the way. I'm not a specialist long distance walker, this was just a holiday backpacking through Cumbria with a mix of camping and booked accommodation.

The start is in Ulverston. It's helpfully marked with a blue plaque and if you can't find it on the map, find the Lotus House Chinese restaurant in the town and there's a brown tourist sign pointing you in the right direction up the side street.

I set off up the path by the beck following the yellow and green Cumbria way discs and signposts and was lost about 10 minutes later! That's partly because I opted not to take a guide book but to just use the OS maps which show the way marked path, and also because I didn't see the tiny squeezer stile in the wall just before the minor road. Anyway the local dog walkers are apparently used to pointing it out and i set off North across farmland, up paths masquerading as steams and through some very wet farmyards.

 The path goes up fairly gently and crosses a few lanes and then starts to head up the Blawith Fells towards Beacon Tarn with the Coniston Fells starting to appear in the distance (see left).

The path goes round the left (West) side of the Tarn and the familiar profile of the Old Man appears to encourage you that Coniston is not so far away.

Once past Beacon Tarn it's fairly effortless downhill and downstream and eventually you come to the footbridge over Torver Beck. It looked pretty full to me but i learned in the next few days that it had been a lot higher and it was merely "enthusiastic" on that day.

Over the bridge it's only a short distance to the Coniston Lakeshore and a straightforward walk towards Coniston. 

I camped at the Great Hoathwaite Farm National Trust campsite which is between Torver and Coniston. But it's not advertised or signed from the lakeshore path. If you want to find it, keep walking until you have just passed the Birmingham University Raymond Priestley Outdoor Centre, then double back up the lane which takes you up to Great Hoathwaite. Don't spend time looking for reception... there isn't one at the moment but the NT rangers do turn up from time to time and I managed to pay after throwing myself in front of the Range Rover to get his attention. It's a nice sloping site. It's a mile inland to Torver (2 pubs). Alternatively you can keep going along the lakeshore to Coniston Hall campsite which you can't miss, or to Coniston itself if you have booked somewhere to stay.