Thursday 1st October 2026

Today’s plan was to walk from Ulverston to Barrow in Furness. As has been the case, there is no indication on the Ordnance Survey app of an official King Charles III coastal path on this section so, once more, Steve had picked out a potential route to get us from A to B, hopefully being able to walk a little nearer to the coastline today. We knew it was going to be a long walk but we had no idea what to expect in terms of path – we had plan Bs in place i.e. turn back/bus or uber!! Yet again the sun was shining down on us – can’t believe it’s October – so we were all set to give it a good try.

First off it was the train to Ulverston which is a beautifully scenic ride – highly recommend it. The walk started through the local streets of Ulverston and then on to a more major road – there were pavements though so all was good and this went on for a good few miles. It was almost like being in that glorious Cumbria countryside again as the views to our left were rolling green hills, farmhouses and flocks of sheep – it was just that we had frantic A5087 running alongside us to the left.

At just over 3 miles, this road led us to a scenic waterfront with a well positioned cafe. A little early to take a break I know but we make the rules up as we go along … and cappuccino and chocolate brownie were so required, and enjoyed. This put a spring in our step and it was fabulous to be walking on a well provided shoreline path. Then the most crazy thing happened – we turned a corner and there to greet us was a very fresh looking wooden King Charles III Coast Path sign, just when you least expect it. Well, it was like snuggling into a comfort blanket, just feeling familiar and knowing that we were going to be led safely to our destination.

From here we were led into ‘Sea Wood’ and, as it says on the tin, it was a wood at the seaside. A very historical wood at that, it was once owned by Lady Jane Grey in the 1500s and was used to supply timber to the local mines and shipbuilding. It was pretty to walk through albeit a little slippery in places – I nearly pulled Steve over when he was helping me down a slope.

So we gaily followed this new official path – all the signposts, steps and kissing gates were lovely new wood – taking us on a variety of terrain … estuary path, shingle beaches, farm fields and some roadside. We did take a little diversion off the road at one point to get some respite from the traffic noise. Steve tried to come to the rescue of a poor sheep that had got wire wrapped around its legs. He wasn’t able to get the wire off so we knocked on a few doors in the nearby village of Aldingham but no-one was in. We finally passed a couple of walkers who offered to notify the local farmer. Hope he’s OK.

We returned to the path on the main Coast Road and then were signposted down to a beach and the sand was perfect for walking on. Always love being this close to the water. However, the tide was coming in and the beach was getting narrower and more rocky – just got a tad anxious about these unusual Morecambe Bay tides. We kept looking out for signs to take us back up but there was just a bank of greenish rocks between us and the higher ground. As the beach became less accessible, we made the decision to scrabble up said rocks. Rock climbing has never been my thing so I was on all fours! And there at the top was a perfect tarmac path – goodness knows how much of that we’d missed and where the sign had been.

We picked up the official signs again and from here it was a completely straightforward walk into Barrow in Furness. Such a contrast to the countryside views of the last few days but interesting in its industrial skyline. From the long seawall path we could see Piel Island, Walney Island and the Barrow shipyard. We took the opportunity to video call our lovely friend Glynis who is a ‘Barrow girl’ and she chatted to us all about her hometown as walked around Cavendish Dock into the centre. We stopped our garmins at this point and we had clocked up 15 miles. We were chuffed with ourselves.

We were relieved to have completed what started as an unknown section, and even more thrilled that King Charles had made such a welcome reappearance. But Steve was even more excited when we got to the station to find a statue of one of his all time heros – Emlyn Hughes – another local … almost as famous as Glynis!