England Coast Path north west

Route Description

The England Coast Path is opening in sections. The open sections in the north west are described here. The path aims to stay as close to the coast as possible. In many places that means you will be walking right alongside the coast. In some places the path heads inland, usually only for short distances. The open sections of the path are well signed, look out for the distinctive acorn waymarkers. Away from towns and villages you will usually find the path has a natural, unmade surface, some areas will get muddy in wet weather. Closer to where people live you might find smooth surfaced paths, and in towns and villages you may be walking on promenades or pavements alongside roads.

Gretna to Allonby
Allonby to Whitehaven
Whitehaven to Silecroft
Silecroft to Green Road
Walney Island
Tarleton Lock to Pier Head Ferry Terminal
Birkenhead to the Welsh Border

Gretna to Allonby

You can now walk some 33 miles (53km) along parts of the Solway Estuary coastline, between the Scottish Border and Allonby. The central part of this long stretch of coast, between Kirkandrews-on-Eden and Rumbling Bridge, near Abbeytown, has yet to be completed – but it’s possible to follow a combination of the Hadrian’s Wall Path, public rights of way and minor roads between these two points, in the meantime. This is probably the wildest and most remote part of the coastline in the northwest of England, if not the country as a whole, with huge expanses of saltmarsh, as well as stunning views over the Solway to Scotland. There are remnants of previous civilisations, such as Hadrian’s Wall and its associated forts, through to more recent disused railways and the old docks at Port Carlisle.

Leaving the Scottish Border, near Gretna, the path soon takes you across the Border Esk River, before passing through Rockcliffe and then upstream, along the River Eden, towards Carlisle. It then turns towards the sea again, following Hadrian’s Wall to Kirkandrews-on-Eden, at which point you can continue along the Hadrian’s Wall Path National Trail to Bowness-on-Solway. North of Abbeytown, the route crosses Calvo & Skinburness Marsh, before heading around the dramatic peninsula at Grune Point. Once again heading south, through the small port town of Silloth, with its traditional cobbled streets, you’ll see that the tidal mud flats of the upper Solway Estuary have given way to miles of sandflats, exposed at high tide, as you walk down the coast to Allonby and beyond. From start to end of this stretch, you are likely to see huge numbers of wild birds, including thousands of geese, at various times throughout the year.

We hope to open the missing part of this stretch – between Kirkandrews-on-Eden and Rumbling Bridge – in the not too distant future. This will follow a route much closer to the coast between Beaumont and Dykesfield, taking in Burgh Marsh and the monument to King Edward I.

Allonby to Whitehaven

The 22 mile (35km) long west Cumbrian section links Allonby to Whitehaven. This coastal region has a fascinating cultural and industrial history. Shipbuilding, coal and iron ore mining, steel making, and chemical manufacture have all been major employers, but little of this remains today. Allonby is an intriguing old Victorian seaside resort with a wonderful beach, and nearby Maryport and its docks have several tourist attractions. Did you realise you can visit one the largest Roman sites in northern Britain on this stretch of coast? The Senhouse Roman Museum at Maryport is dramatically situated on the cliffs and well worth a visit.

Iron and steel manufacture have always been part of Workington’s heritage, and it was here that the famous Henry Bessemer first introduced his revolutionary steel making process. In recent years, with the decline of the steel industry and coal mining, the town has diversified into other forms of industry.

Further south is Whitehaven. A sleepy fishing hamlet for many centuries, Whitehaven grew rapidly in the 17th and 18th centuries. Its growth, to become one of the busiest ports in the country, was due to exports from the local coal mining industry and the trade with the Americas. Today Whitehaven thrives thanks to its historic harbour and busy marina for leisure craft. Numerous attractions in the town explore its rich and varied history.

Watch the stunning drone footage from Visit Lake District below.

Whitehaven to Silecroft

This stretch continues south from Whitehaven to explore Cumbria’s wild west coast. First up is the classic coastal walk to St Bees, passing the official start of Alfred Wainwright’s famous ‘Coast to Coast’ walk and the RSPB bird hides at the top of the highest cliffs in the north west.

Next is a section of stunning brand new access through farmland and cliff top, running parallel with the scenic Cumbrian coastal railway which enables linear walking throughout the stretch; before a completely different experience past the picturesque beach huts of Braystones.

The surreal sci-fi Sellafield skyline is unmissable on the approach to the attractive seaside village of Seascale with plenty of facilities to refresh weary walkers ahead of the gloriously wild Drigg dunes and beach with their epic views inland to the Lake District fells.

Don’t miss the circuit of Ravenglass, which uniquely sits in not one, but two World Heritage Sites – the Lake District National Park, and the Hadrian’s Wall and Frontiers of the Roman Empire site, with its Roman bath house ruins and the site of the Glannoventa fort.

Heading south, a combination of new and existing access takes you past Eskmeals MOD site, Tarn Point and Annaside, before a final 3 miles of new clifftop access past the bulk of Black Combe to Silecroft.

At 32 miles (52km), this stretch, on opening in 2021, brought the total length of National Trail in Cumbria to 70 miles: 54 miles (88km) between Allonby and Silecroft, and a further 16 miles (26km) around Walney Island.

Watch our brand new film showcasing this stretch of the England Coast Path!

England Coast Path – Whitehaven to Silecroft from Visit Lake District.

Silecroft to Green Road

This 11.5 mile (18.6km) stretch of England Coast Path opened in February 2022 and brings the total length of the National Trail now open in Cumbria to 81 miles. Taking in the settlements of Haverigg and Millom alongside dunes, estuary, saltmarsh, farmland and beach, it completes west Cumbria’s Copeland Borough section, contains a small section of the Lake District National Park, and connects the wild coast with its famous mountains. For one of the best views in Cumbria, head to Millom for the vista over the Duddon Estuary sands to the high fells. Why not use the coastal railway to enable linear walks between Silecroft, Millom and Green Road station (where this section of trail ends) – or further north from Silecroft all the way to Maryport?

Accessibility

It’s one of Cumbria’s most accessible sections so far, being relatively flat and with good sections free of man-made barriers. Hodbarrow Lagoon and the Millom Ironworks area are particular highlights which are accessible to rugged off-road wheelchairs; elsewhere between Haverigg and Green Road, infrastructure is designed to allow access for all-terrain wheelchairs but does include muddy terrain and stock-proof gates which require use of a RADAR key (please bear with us whilst a faulty lock is replaced in the first week or so of the stretch opening).

We’ve also trialled a new, more accessible signage system. Where you come across our information panels on your visit, you can now scan a QR code, marked by Braille stickers, to access a digital version of the text for use with smartphone screenreading technology.

If you’d prefer to plan ahead, you can view the sign content here: Signage Accessibility

Access to the Coastal Margin

Please note there are some access restrictions in the coastal margin, primarily for the safety of walkers and sensitive wildlife. These can be viewed at www.openaccess.naturalengland.org.uk.

Launch film

If you’re intrigued and would like to more about this stretch, and the ECP in general, why not watch our new half hour film, complete with captions and British Sign Language interpretation, here: England Coast Path: Cumbria – YouTube

Happy exploring – here’s a quick teaser of what’s in store!

Walney Island

Walney is the eighth largest island in England and it now has a 26km (16 mile) section of the England Coast Path. This new national trail circumnavigates the island, starting and finishing at Jubilee Bridge (where it will eventually connect to the rest of the England Coast Path), offering some stunning landscapes for walkers on the way. To the north, there are wonderful views of Black Combe and the Coniston Fells, to the west the Irish Sea and the massed ranks of wind turbines, to the south views across Morecambe Bay to Blackpool and to the east, Piel Channel and the adjoining Furness coastline.

The salt marshes, sand dunes and intertidal habitats of Walney Island support breeding birds, wintering waders and wildfowl as well as populations of important protected species such as natterjack toads. Both northern and southern tips are protected by nature reserves which help maintain the special character and feel of the island. The sense of wilderness provided by the open spaces is a stark contrast to the neighbouring industrial landscape.

Accompanied by the amazing views, you may be lucky enough to see porpoises or roe deer and of course the Walney geranium or natterjack toad to add to the experience. There are some outstanding eating and drinking places along the way and, with luck, you could finish your adventure with one of the famous Walney sunsets.

In due course, the road bridge connecting Walney to Barrow will enable onward routes around Morecambe Bay, and north towards the Duddon Estuary and west Cumbria. Proposals either side of Walney were published by Natural England in January 2020 for consultation.

Want to see more? Here’s our video for Walney:

Tarleton Lock to Pier Head Ferry Terminal

The newest section of the England Coast Path stretches for 36.4 miles (58.6km), from Tarleton Lock to Pier Head Ferry Terminal in Liverpool.

At Tarleton Lock, a sea lock links the Rufford branch of the Leeds & Liverpool Canal to the River Douglas. Walkers are accompanied by colourful narrowboats as the trail makes its way along the river’s west bank, past Becconsall’s saltmarsh habitat, and out to the Ribble Estuary National Nature Reserve.

Stretches of sea wall carry walkers to Hesketh Out Marsh, an important bird habitat. Winter here sees the spectacular arrival of thousands of migratory pink-footed geese. The marsh is home to huge flocks of wading birds, including redshank and lapwing, for much of the year.

Beyond Fiddler’s Ferry, the path follows the Sefton coast through Marshside into the seaside resort of Southport, where the sea itself is a rare sight, due to decades of sand deposition which has created a fine feeding ground for waders such as curlew and avocet. The Sefton coast is protected as a Site of Special Scientific Interest. Here, wildlife-rich habitats such as the RSPB Marshside bird reserve and the dunes of the Ainsdale and Birkdale Sandhills Nature Reserve exist alongside attractions such as the Royal Birkdale Golf Club, Southport Marine Lake – one of England’s largest man-made leisure pursuit lakes – and Pleasureland theme park.

In 2019, the Ainsdale reserve hosted alien lifeforms, when the BBC filmed scenes for its adaption of H. G. Wells’ science fiction classic The War of the Worlds. Trees felled for conservation reasons and a little biodegradable paint on the surrounding vegetation created exactly the right atmosphere for an alien landing site.

Beyond Formby Hills, where dunes, grasslands and Corsican pine woodlands provide a haven for species such as natterjack toad, sand lizard and red squirrel, the coast path leaves the dunes to safely pass around the Altcar Firing Range Danger Area before heading for Crosby, where Anthony Gormley’s Another Place sculpture – 100 cast-iron figures gazing across the Irish Sea – are scattered among the beach’s shifting sands.

The trail becomes more urban as it bears walkers past Bootle’s docks and into Liverpool, Britain’s fourth biggest city and one of the world’s finest cultural centres. Beyond the historic Liver Building and the statue of the city’s most famous sons, The Beatles, the section ends at Pier Head Terminal, ready for a ferry across the Mersey.

Birkenhead to the Welsh Border

This stretch of the King Charles III England Coast Path stretches for 36.4 miles (58.6km), from the Seacombe Ferry Terminal in Birkenhead to the Welsh border, near Chester.

The scenery changes as the path is followed from Birkenhead towards Wales; initially, walkers on the eastern side of the peninsula will be able to take in the spectacle of Liverpool’s historic docks, just across the Mersey. After turning the corner at New Brighton, there will be views out over the Irish Sea. Turning the corner again at Red Rocks, Hoylake, the vista changes to the Dee Estuary and the Welsh hills beyond.

Around low tide, the sea all but disappears past the horizon – with thousands of hectares of sandflats stretching away into the distance. At these times, Hilbre Island is a popular destination for walkers, across the sandflats from West Kirby.

Halfway down the southwest coast of the Wirral, the sandflats exposed by the retreating tide give way to huge expanses of saltmarsh – home to many species of birds.

As with the scenery, the nature of the walking changes over the course of this stretch of the KCIIIECP – from urban and suburban promenades to beaches, low clifftop grassy paths, isolated patches of scrub and woodland – finishing with saltmarsh-fringe.