The challenge is to walk Wainwright's, 190 mile Coast to Coast path from St. Bees in the West to Robin Hood's Bay in the East or vice versa and be totally self-contained and unsupported with no re-supply. Wild camping, obtaining water from natural sources and carrying all food and equipment for the proposed 12 day trip. In this manner the walk becomes free or "unplugged" and is part of my larger Four Nation's coast to coast endeavour, of which details can be found at Transnationcoast2coast.com



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Be under no illusion that this walk is waymarked throughout. It is an unofficial route and as such suffers from a scarcity of signage that, depending on your outlook, will lead to a more or less enjoyable experience.
However your preferences, you will be led on a quiz chase of contrived progress that for me added to the character of the trail and endeared me to its individuality.
Ideally take a guide book, maps, compass and Gps and know how to use them, as crossing some of the remoter sections in bad weather could be interesting. There is a wealth of helpful information on the Web about this walk so don't be disheartened, knowledge is security and weighs nothing so pack as much as you can!
I chose the East to West option, Robin Hood's Bay to St. Bee's. Walking this direction, chosen as the bulk of the food weight would be consumed by the time the Lakes was reached, proved to be a fortuitous decision. Contrary to the opinion that its better to have the weather at your back, the Westerly wind initially cooled and prevented excess sweating, consequently saving water. Luckily, during the Lakeland section, switching to an Easterly, gave much needed assistance up them hills!
Having the Lakes, as the last third was indeed the "Jewel in the Crown" and I would favour this direction every time. The only downside seams to be that St. Bee's has not the historical finishing significance or character of Robin Hood's Bay.
Wainwright's route was followed for the whole distance, taking the direct route between Rosthwaite and Patterdale and the High stile alternative between Rosthwaite and Ennerdale Bridge.
I aimed to walk 16 miles a day but this varied in reality to between 14 -19 miles.
Daily mileage detailed below.

Day 1 - 15
Day 2 - 16
Day 3 - 14
Day 4 - 16
Day 5 - 17
Day 6 - 17
Day 7 - 19
Day 8 - 14
Day 9 - 16
Day 10 - 15
Day 11 - 15
Day 12 - 16

See Navigation post for more info.