I re-visited one of England's most spectacular hikes after a £5.5m upgrade

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Danny SavageCoast to Coast trail

Getty Images St Bees beach is pictured in the background with groups of houses near the water's edge with groynes lining the beach itself, and in the foreground is a coastal path surrounded by vegetation, on a cloudy day.

The tradition at the start of the Coast to Coast walk is to dip your boots in the sea near the village of St Bees.

Just don't get them too wet.

This spot, on the Irish Sea coast in West Cumbria, is the starting point for a very long stroll, all the way to the North Sea.

It's a tough 190 mile (305km) trail through three National Parks, from England's east coast to its west.

"It's got culture, it's got historical interest and it's got challenge, but it isn't too challenging," says Doug Sim, chair of St Bees Parish Council. "And by having a definitive start and finish at the beaches, it feels very complete."

The route has now been designated England's newest National Trail following a £5.5m upgrade improving surfacing, signage and accessibility.

Fix the Fells A picture of grassy hills with a stream in the foreground, with big stepping stones in the middle

A map of the Coast to Coast trail from St Bees - on the Irish Sea coast - to Robin Hood's Bay - on the North Sea coast - showing Lake District National Park, Yorkshire Dales National Park and North York Moors National Park along the way

It was first devised and walked by the legendary fell-walker Alfred Wainwright more than 50 years ago.

He felt the Pennine Way - the famous 268-mile (429 km) trail from the Peak District to the Scottish Borders - was too long for most people, taking three weeks. He believed a challenging yet beautiful two-week trek was needed.

A guidebook to the Coast to Coast was published by him in the early 1970s in his own handwriting and sketches. It is a work of art.

Chris Butterfield A red book entitled "A Coast to Coast walk - a pictorial guide" with a map of the trail on the front cover, behind brown glasses and a brown pipe

I walked it back in 1991, book in hand. The weather was glorious. I was lucky.

The first few days of the trail across the Lake District are the hardest yards. Up and down, over numerous mountain ridges and along remote valleys.

Make it to the village of Shap and you've done the toughest bit.

The issue up until now is that some of the route was on permissive paths through private land, which could be closed for some of the year.

Over the last few years a lot of legal work has been done by local authorities and the National Parks to make the path an official right of way.

It is now better signposted too, with the letters "aw" inscribed on each way-marker as a nod to the man who thought of it first. In many ways it is his National Trail.

Day two of the journey for most is the eastward march up Ennerdale in the Lake District. This is just one place where a lot of improvement work has been done. There are new gates and bridges to make it accessible for all.

It is impossible for a wheelchair user to follow the whole trail but chunky sections are now doable. This is a joy for Annie Wallen, who lives in the area and can travel 15 miles (24km) in her motorised wheelchair.

She says Wainwright "might have walked in boots but I roll on rubber. I love it." Even being able to do a portion of this trail is "really special" to her.

A woman using a mobility scooter with a dark blue jacket in the middle, travelling along a wide gravel track. Two men walk beside her, one on each side. The track runs through open countryside with grassy ground, scattered trees, and forested slopes rising on either side. Cloudy sky overhead.

Above the valley the path stretches away over high ground, parts of which have now been laid with giant flagstones. This will tackle the erosion caused by years of boots from all over the world.

Jo Willmott, a project ranger for the trail's upgrade, says you often meet people from the US, Canada and other countries. "It's showing the best of the UK," she says.

After the Lakes comes the Yorkshire Dales National Park.

The route goes from Kirkby Stephen, over the hills to Swaledale, past long-forgotten lead mine ruins - as recently seen in Wuthering Heights - and on through vibrant green pastures to Reeth and Richmond.

This is Mark Reid's favourite stretch. He should know, he has walked the Coast to Coast nine times. He guides groups of walkers along the trail from end to end.

Swaledale in the Yorkshire Dales National Park . Two people, Danny and Mark , and a dog stand on a grassy riverbank beside a wide, calm river. A line of trees borders the water, and an old stone wall curves across the field behind them. The landscape rises into green hills with scattered trees and additional stone walls, leading towards distant higher ground under an overcast sky.

I meet him on the village green in Reeth and we walk down to the banks of the River Swale.

He says "you've got a group of friends" after two weeks of walking, and visitors often return again and again. "You reach the North Sea and it's really emotional, there are people in tears. It's really quite a fantastic experience."

The fact that people often come back is part of the reason the £5.5m upgrade went ahead. It is seen as an investment with a demonstrable future return from visitor spending.

A wooden signpost stands at a junction of paths, with two horizontal arms pointing in different directions. The right‑hand arm reads “Coast to Coast Path, Public Footpath” with a walking‑figure symbol. The left‑hand arm shows part of the same acorn‑shaped National Trail marker. Trees and grassland fill the background, and a gravel path runs behind the sign. In the centre of the sign post are the initials aw carved into it.

From the Dales, the Coast to Coast goes across to the North York Moors National Park.

Clad in flowering purple heather in late summer, the moorland path goes via the famous Lion Inn pub at Blakey Ridge, through wooded gorges, past steam trains at Grosmont and onto journey's end at Robin Hood's Bay.

It's a picture-postcard finish. A quiet, steep lane leads down through fishermen's cottages with their orange pantile roofs to a waterside hotel and the sea. Or rock-pools if the tide is out.

This is where you can dip your boots in the water for the final time and reflect on memories of a life well walked.