Encyclopedia:
Sea to Sea Cycle Route
Coast to Coast or
Sea to Sea Cycle Route (C2C) is
Britain's most popular long-distance
cycle route and is based on minor roads, disused railway lines,
off-road tracks and specially constructed
cycle paths. It crosses the
Lake District and the
Pennines in the north of England.
At 140 miles long, the route is designed for the whole range of cyclists, from families to
cycle club riders. Off-road sections have an alternative surfaced track. Although a challenge with some hard climbs—the highest point being over 2000 feet—the C2C has an average of between 12,000 and 15,000 cyclists completing the route every year.
The route should not be confused with the
Coast to Coast Walk, a long-distance footpath which takes a different route between the two coastlines.
History
The C2C was developed by
Sustrans and part of the
National Cycle Network (NCN) in partnership with various
Local Authorities,
Groundwork West Cumbria,
North Pennines Tourism Partnership,
Forest Enterprise and the
Lake District National Park amongst others. The route was opened in
1994 running from
Whitehaven on the west coast of
Cumbria to the North East coast at
Sunderland.
In
2005 a complementary route was opened further to the south. This, titled the
Walney to Wear route (W2W), is designed to be slightly tougher and longer. It runs from
Walney Island in south west Cumbria to Sunderland via the
North Yorkshire Moors and
Durham.
Route
The route starts in the former coal mining and industrial lands of
Whitehaven,
West Cumbria, travels through the stunning scenery of the northern
Lake District, heading into
Keswick before passing through
Penrith and the
Eden Valley with its lush valleys and
sandstone villages. It then starts the climb up to
Hartside and onto the unspoilt
Northern Pennines - the roof of England. There then follows an undulating ride as the C2C meanders through old
lead mining villages, such as
Garrigill,
Nenthead and
Rookhope, and down into the
Durham Dales before entering the old steel town of
Consett. From here it's an easy ride through one of Britain's old industrial heartlands to the
North Sea and
Sunderland. There is also the option of starting at
Workington and/or finishing at
Tynemouth
... View more...