Ulvgra one

Slow Way not verified yet. Verify Ulvgra here.

This is a long walk, which I did from Ulverston to Grange. It took several hours to walk, included some places where things weren't quite right, and it only took 15 minutes to get the train from Grange back to Ulverston. I think this Slow Way is likely to be replaced in the next year or so when the evolving England Coast Path will offer a much more well-maintained alternative. It's a long walk and to explain the three-star rating, the worst parts warrant two stars and the best parts get five stars, so three stars is just an overall rating.

Leaving Ulverston involved following the Cumbria Way, which I'd already done as part of Broulv One. The route took me to Broughton Beck, where I switched to field paths to get to Scathwaite. There were five ladder stiles on these paths that were in a poor state, and two of them were close to collapse, and there was a huge bog that had to be circumvented. The short path at Smithy Green I'd already experienced on Ulvlak One, and it's just an awkward obstacle course. My route from Greenodd to Low Wood was exactly the same as I'd already walked on Ulvlak One, but I was barely halfway through the walk when I continued to Grange.

The big climb of the day was from Low Wood to Bigland Tarn, following signposts for the Cumbria Coastal Way - a route which never really got off the ground - and in this area is nowhere near the coast anyway. That's why the England Coast Path will be a big improvement in this area. Field paths led me from farm to farm and while some parts were well waymarked, other parts needed careful navigation. A notice welcomed me to Burns Farm, then another notice said 'sorry to see you go'. A field path and a woodland path led me to Cartmel Racecourse, where the public footpath runs straight across the racecourse and straight through a football pitch. I've never been there on a race day or when a football match has been in progress, so I have no idea whether they ask walkers to choose an alternative route.

Cartmel is well worth exploring if you've never been before, and the world's best sticky toffee pudding is made and sold there. Have a look at the Priory, and note that you are free to short-cut through the churchyard, avoiding the road-walk around the village. A signpost for the Cistercian Way pointed out of the village for a climb onto the shoulder of Hampsfell. Although the day was a bit grey, views were remarkably extensive, taking in half of the Lake District and large areas of the Yorkshire Dales and Lancashire. The descent to Grange leads to a network of paths where any choice you make will get you safely down into town. There's food, drink, buses and trains, and a fine park with an interesting duckpond in the middle of everything.

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