Contents
Introduction
The Cumbria Way
The mountain way
Wildlife and plants
Geology (Ronald Turnbull)
When to go
Getting there
Accommodation
Safety
Planning your itinerary
What to take
Maps
Using GPS
Using this guide
The Cumbria Way
Stage 1 Ulverston to Coniston (or Torver)
Stage 2 Coniston to Great Langdale
Stage 2A Torver to Great Langdale – mountain route
Stage 3 Great Langdale to Keswick
Stage 3A Great Langdale to Keswick – mountain route
Stage 4 Keswick to Caldbeck
Stage 4A Keswick to Caldbeck – mountain route
Stage 4B Keswick to Caldbeck – foul weather route
Stage 5 Caldbeck to Carlisle
Appendix A Route summary table
Appendix B Facilities table
Appendix C Accommodation stage by stage
Appendix D Useful contacts
The 73-mile Cumbria Way was the invention of local Ramblers groups over 40 years ago, and has been rather melodramatically described as "an arrow through the heart of the Lake District." In this beautifully illustrated new guide, John Gillham takes even more diversions from the already anything but arrow-straight route, which wriggles north through the Lakes from Ulverston to Carlisle. He makes a series of significant mountainous deviations from the original route, taking in the tempting Lakeland giants of Skiddaw, Walla Crag, Glaramara, Swirl How and Coniston Old Man, which should satisfy even the most frustrated peak-bagger.
[I couldn't] wish for a more enthusiastic and comprehensive guide to take me there. Highly recommended.
Roly Smith, Outdoor Focus