Photo: Rob Fraser
The Whitehaven coast is a haven for walkers. Two of the most famous and stunning long distance walks in the country, the Coast to Coast and the Cumbrian Coastal Way, pass through it but the area is by no means only suitable for the experienced walker.
Visitors to the area are often amazed that a 10 minute walk from the town centre can bring you into the heart of a wild and stunning coastal landscape with cliff-top paths, historic monuments, beaches and rock pools, the smugglers cove of Fleswick Bay and rare sea-bird breeding colonies.
For those who may find the walk from the town centre a little taxing or just want to grab a bit of fresh air during a lunch hour there is plenty of free parking available outside the Haig Pit Mining Museum which is just 5 metres from the coastal path. As the plans to improve the facilities in the area are implemented more parking will become available at different points.
Over the next year or two the path network in the area will be improved and tidied up, areas that have become narrow through overgrown vegetation will be opened up again and new signs and seating areas will be installed to help everybody enjoy the area.
Click here to follow the link to plans of the proposed path network (including which sections are suitable for users with limited mobility).
A new guide to the Cumbria Coastal Way Guide by Ian Brodie will be available soon from Cicerone Press priced £12.
ISBN:1852844302
Local Walking Club Links
Whitehaven Rambling Club
The Ramblers Association and affiliated clubs
A short walk around Whitehavens' historic town centre
