C2C Day 0 – St Bees Head

I lucked out and got a ride from South Wales where I was visiting family to St Bees with my niece and family who were travelling up to the lake District that weekend. We arrived early afternoon and their dog and my great-niece had fun playing on the stones and beach. It was a little chilly in the wind, but the sun had come out and the rain had stopped (pic1).

Several things to look at in St Bees – St Bees priory dates from 1130 (pic 2), and the St Bees man, a knight who died in 1368 was discovered there, St Bees school (pic 3) founded as a free grammar school in 1583 (now an independent boarding school with many overseas students) and the life boat station (pic 4). Also I found one post office/ convenience store, a cafe on the front, two pub/hotels (pic 4) and a wild sauna (pic 5) that you can book! So we had a good wander, and then I said goodbye to my family and headed up to my diggs for the night at Stone House farm, a very pretty stone house with lots of flowers out front (pic 6). I had a warm welcome from the lady there and ordered my packed lunch for the next day (£8 for 2 sandwiches, apple, crisps, flap jack and a drink), and set my breakfast time for 7am to get and early start.

Then the lady there had a brilliant suggestion for me. Since it was only 2.30pm, and the sun was now shining, and the forecast for tomorrow was rain, she suggested I do the coastal path today, then loop back to St Bees, so tomorrow I can take the path directly east instead of North and around. This would be a 15k 3 hr loop this afternoon, (11k along the c2c path and 4k to complete the loop back to St Bees), and then 4k instead of 11k to rejoin at the point I leave the trail today.  So an additional 8k to the total distance, but took 7k off tomorrow making a much easier day 1 in what looked like rain! So I made a quick stop in my room (a cozy single room is up on the 2nd floor under the eaves), dropped my bag off and set off back down to the beach.  (Pic 7)

I picked up a stone to carry with me to the east coast, dipped my boot in the sea and followed the coast path north. Several ups and downs, beautiful views over the cliffs, along narrow paths cliff top paths and edges of fields. I saw some nosy cows and many flocks of sheep. There are some good places to spot birds on the cliffs with signs showing what to look for.  A little diversion to see St Bees light house and then at 7.5k turned inland by the quarry along paved foot paths and farm lanes, with a fist glimpse of the hills to come, getting closer to St Bees again!  At Town Head 9.3k head along a narrow muddy path which turns at a track to Desmesne farm where you turn right to walk through the farm yard and left to join st bees road.  Go straight across the road and continue to Bell House. The path goes around Bell house to the left then veers left. Be sure to follow the hand written sign here to the right through the gate pic, not down to the left.  A few homemade signs in this section with c2c on them at path junctions but certainly not fully signed yet.

Just after this point 11.3k the c2c goes left down the field and the track continues back towards St Bees.  So if this was my official day one I would finally be heading away from St Bees!

It was also around this point that I realised I had been in such a hurry to dump my bag and get out on the trail on the sun that (a) I hadn’t brought any water (and I was now thirsty, one of the things I had promised my husband I would not let happen, with my new last year easy to sip hydropak), and (b) I hadn’t brought my funky umbrella system (yet to be tested) or waterproof trousers (and it was now raining) and (c) hadn’t brought my poles (which I could have used to help jump over the mud and make quicker progress over the bumpy fields. Luckily for me it did stop raining before too long and I only had 4k to wait for a drink.The way back to St Bees then went across fields, with plenty of sheep (and mud), and at 13k joined Wood Lane which at 14k came to the old school, so left turn back through St Bees to Stone House Farm (3hrs almost exactly as my host had said) and a drink of water! A lovely start to the c2c, and I changed my breakfast to 8am since I didn’t need the early start anymore! After a nice warm shower I headed to the Queen’s pub/hotel for a fish chips and mushy peas dinner and a half of the local beer (Black Sheep).