The hike starts at the point of Ulverston, near Morecambe Bay, you will travel to the village of Coniston on Coniston Water. A footpath starts by the sculpture which represents the start of the Cumbria way; you will follow this, keeping the stream on the left hand side at all times. Soon you will come to a bridge which you will have to cross and then follow another pass which then joins up with a lane. You will not follow the lane, but rather pass through a small gap in the wall, known as a 'squeezegate' and then cross some fields to a farm.

From this farm you will pass through fields and more farmyards and then enter the small village of Broughton Beck. In the village you will have to follow a road with a 'no throughway' sign and just before you get to a stream you will have to turn left and north on to a path. When you get to Keldray farm you follow diagonally left uphill to the town of Gawthwaite, where the National Park starts proper.

Continuing through fields and some moorland you will pass the small lake of Beacon Tarn before going downhill and crossing the A road. It is here that you will get to the shores of Coniston Water. You will follow through some woodland that covers the western edge of the lake and will finally come across the campsite for Coniston. If you are staying in Coniston itself you will have to walk on for about another ten minutes. In Coniston there are two hostels that charge around £10 per night and a few more bed and breakfast hotels, which will set you back approximately £22 per night.

The second day of this walk is not quite as long as the first, though it still is quite lengthy. The route today is not very hill, but does have some steep paths near the end of the day. The path starts at the eastern end of Coniston and after crossing a bridge will lead uphill to some meadows and in to woodland. The path then eases its way past some farm buildings and cottages and then follows a lane up to Tarn Hows, another small lake. The path then goes north westerly to a track that crosses another A road. Once crossed the path follows through some more wooded areas downhill and views of the Waterfall here can be seen which is very impressive when the river is up. When you get to the small settlement at Skelwith Bridge the path crosses through the yard of a factory that produces slate tiles. After Skelwith Bridge the trail goes along the north bank of the river to the attractive Elterwater Lake. The path then follows on to the village of Great Langdale for your overnight stop. Great Langdale has a campsite and a few B&B's. The campsite is £4 per night and the hotels are around £30 per night.

The 75 mile Cumbria Way and the 50 mile Allerdale Ramble are the two premier long-distance walks across the English Lake District. Keeping mainly to the valley bottoms, they are a superb introduction to Britain's most popular walking area and to the pleasures of long-distance walking itself. This illustrated guide, the most comprehensive ever, tells you everything you need to know to make walking these two routes an enjoyable and rewarding experience. Most of the walking is easy, using well-established routes along the valley bottoms.

If you're reasonably fit you should comfortably complete one of the walks during a week's holiday, and still have time for a day out to climb a mountain or explore a Lakeland town too. Each route can be split up into short walks to be enjoyed at different times, but by far the best way is to tackle them as a continuous day-after-day series of delights.
Taking in some of the most magnificent upland country in England, this guide leads the reader through 150 miles of the Lake District National Park, and has as its central theme the poet William Wordsworth. Starting at his birthplace in Cockermouth, the book traces a circular course embracing the stunning scenery and taking in the places that figured in Wordsworth's life and the scenes that inspired his work. Each stage is planned to end within easy reach of a youth hostel, campsite or bed and breakfast establishment. Concise step-by-step route instructions are augmented with notes and the occasional verse that explains, at salient points along the way, how the landscape shaped the thoughts and work of Wordsworth, and what there is for the present day walker to see and experience. Clear and easy to use route maps and altitude profiles for each stage are complemented by both colour and monochrome photographs.

On day three of the trail you will briefly make your way through the rugged fells of the region before returning once more to the valleys. The walk carries on at the head of Great Langdale, where the valley splits into two directions. You will take the right path along a valley named 'Mickleden', at the end of the valley there is a choice of paths to follow; you will take the right hand side path which goes steeply up Stake Pass. At the top of the Pass you will have some splendid views back down the valley, though the views will disappear as you follow the path that passes grassy mounds and a cairn that marks the highest point in the day's walk. The Cumbria Way then drops into Langstrath valley, which itself runs into another valley, Borrowdale. The path follows on past Stonethwaite and Rosthwaite and along the River Derwent to the banks of Derwent Water. Derwent Water is a pleasant place to waste a few minutes, taking in the breathtaking views. The path continues along to Keswick through some forested land. Keswick is where you will spend the night. The town has plenty of B&B style hotels, prices starting at £14 and a few campsites which charge around £4 per night. There are also a few mid-end hotels at the £40 per night mark. There are plenty of cafes and teashops in Keswick and it is a pretty town to stroll around.

Day Four

This is probably the most difficult stage of the walk with the trail crossing open moorland to Caldbeck. Mist and low cloud are a distinct possibility at this point in the walk and you will need to be adept at using your Map and compass. From Keswick you will pass through a Pine plantation and find yourself at a lane that makes its way from Applethwaite. The Way then makes its way across the open Fells and following a path along the steep side of the Glenderaterra Valley. It is on this part of the route that you will come across the YHA hostel at Skiddaw house, where you will follow the Cumbria Way route north east and takes you by Caldew Beck and Grainsgill Beck, before going up the steep side of the valley to the Mountain shelter at Dingy Hut. Past the shelter the route goes left of the High Pike summit and the path drops from the fells to farmland, almost abruptly. The path follows past Nether Row and you will travel through country lanes into Caldbeck. Caldbeck is a quiet little village with a few B&B's with rooms at the £20 mark. There are no campsites or hostels in the village.

Day Five

This final section of the Cumbria Way which makes its way to Carlisle is not the most pretty of routes and is though quite flat, tiring. From Caldbeck the way takes a quiet road which makes its way alongside the river and you will come across a track which makes it way into some woodland. The path can get confusing in the woods and if you manage to keep to the right path you will cross some fields before entering some more woodland. The route again follows the river here and you will come across the settlement at Bridge End, around half way between Caldbeck and Carlisle. The path now follows through some meadows and fields to the outskirts of Carlisle. You have now finished the famous Cumbria Way.

There is plenty of accommodation to choose from in Carlisle and it is linked with the rest of England with regular trains to other cities.

Length of Walk: 5 days, averaging 6 hours walking per day.

Start point: Ulverston

Finish point: Carlisle

Nearest Town to walk: Carlisle, Ulverston

Transport: Buses from Barrow in Furness go to Ulverston as well as trains from Lancaster. Carlisle has regular trains and buses to the rest of England.

Accommodation: There are B&B's throughout the walk and Hotels available in Keswick and Carlisle. There are campsites at most night stops apart from on day four.

Supplies: All supplies can be purchased in any town in the Lake District, as there are hiking shops everywhere due to the popularity of the area.

Best time to walk: As the English weather is very temperamental it Is hard to pick a perfect time to walk. The spring and autumn would probably be best as summer can get busy, though any holiday period will bring out the weekenders. Best weather will be between March and October.

Difficulty: *****

This walk is rated as a 2. It can be tough for some walkers as the average for hours of walk per day is six, but the going is pretty easy. There is a few tougher segments of the route but nothing to really try walkers.