Ulverston to Great Langdale
The South Lakes
Limestone farmland gives way to slate villages and oak-shaded lakeshore, and by Great Langdale the high fells are stacked in front of you.
Self-guided · Cumbria
Your walk from
Ulverston to
Carlisle
You'll walk 112 kilometres through the Lake District taken along its valley floors rather than its tops, with one proper fell crossing and a long, quiet second half. A route that saves its best country for last.
- Distance
- 112 km
- Ascent
- 2,900 m
- Stages
- 3 – 6 days
- Grade
- Moderate–Strenuous
Trail Essentials
Start
Ulverston
Cumbria
End
Carlisle
Cumbria
Distance
112 km
70 miles
Total Ascent
2,900 m
9,514 ft
Difficulty
Moderate–Strenuous
Hilliness
Mountainous
Time to Complete
Explorer
6 days
~19 km/day
Hiker
5 days
~22 km/day
Fastpacker
4 days
~28 km/day
Trail Runner
3 days
~37 km/day
When to Walk
Best Good Avoid
JAN
FEB
MAR
APR
MAY
JUN
JUL
AUG
SEP
OCT
NOV
DEC
There's a version of the Lake District most visitors never see — not the crowded shores of Windermere, but a quiet run of valleys, passes and northern fells the Cumbria Way slips through almost unnoticed. It runs 73 miles from Ulverston on the southern edge of the Lakes to Carlisle, past Coniston Water, over the Stake Pass, through Borrowdale, and into fell country most people drive straight past.
It's one of England's less-crowded long-distance routes, and all the better for it — valley floors and lakeshores for the most part, with one proper fell crossing at Stake Pass to earn the view, and a long, quiet run north that most walkers remember longest.
How the trail unfolds.
Your trail divides naturally into three parts — not by day, but by country. Limestone farmland gives way to high fells, and the fells fall away into the long quiet of the Caldew Valley.
Great Langdale to Skiddaw House
Through the Heart of the Fells
A high pass, a lake-shore tour through the heart of the Lakes, and a final climb into country most walkers remember longest.
Skiddaw House to Carlisle
The Caldew Valley
The fells fall away behind you, the country quiets, and a long river-walk delivers you to Carlisle.
Build your trip
Customise your Cumbria Way.
Pick your pace, party size and dates. The itinerary, distances, nightly stops and the price all update live — no commitment until you're happy.
- Days sized to your walking speed
- Each night ends at a stop with accommodation
- Pricing reflects party size and seasonality
- Save and share the itinerary with your group
Hiker · 4.0 km/h
2 walkers
Days
5
Distance
112 km
Walking
41 hrs
Your day-by-day itinerary updates live in the Your itinerary section below.
Trip total
£1,218
£609 per person · 4 nights · party of 2
Build your itinerary above.
This is the itinerary you're building. Change the pace, party size or start date in the planner above and every stage, distance and date updates here.
Where you'll stay
Where you'll rest your legs.
Expect Lakeland coaching inns, farmhouse B&Bs and the odd village pub with rooms — the kind of places that know exactly what wet boots and hill legs look like. In Great Langdale you're staying beneath the Pikes; in Keswick, right in the thick of it.
- Proper drying rooms for wet Cumbrian days
- Hearty Northern breakfasts before a big fell day
- Family-run inns and farmhouses, not chains
- A night at remote Skiddaw House if your itinerary allows it
Every trip is planned around your dates and party, so we can't promise you a specific inn — but we can promise the kind of welcome that makes a walking holiday feel like a proper holiday.
What's included?
Self-guided, but properly supported. You turn up, you walk, you eat well, you sleep well. We handle the logistics.
A scenic trek through the Lake District.
112km / 2,900m
Get your personalised itinerary
Not included
- Travel to Ulverston and from Carlisle
- Lunches and evening meals (we'll recommend the best places)
- Travel insurance
Travelling solo? You're still connected.
Walking the Cumbria Way alone doesn't mean being out of touch. We lend you a small GPS tracker for the trail, and a private map link lets the people who care about you follow along from home.
A lightweight GPS tracker
Carry it in your pack and it updates your position as you walk — no phone signal required.
A private live map
See your own progress on a secure map, with your overnight stops visible at a glance.
Share with people you trust
Send the private link to family or friends so they know you've arrived safely each day.
Book your Cumbria Way adventure.
Your Cumbria Way adventure
Configure your trip in the builder above and it will appear here.
Per Person
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Trip Total
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Deposit Today
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- Free cancellation to 60 days
- Confirmation within 24 hrs
- ABTOT financially protected
Not quite ready?
We'll start planning your trip right away. Not happy with anything? We'll adjust it or refund you — no questions asked.
The Association of Bonded Travel Organisers Trust Limited (ABTOT) provides financial protection under The Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements Regulations 2018 for Big Trail Adventures (member 5690). Protection is provided for non-flight packages. Full details in our booking conditions.
Things walkers ask us.
How fit do I need to be?
Comfortably walking 20 km a day with a daypack is the honest baseline for the Hiker pace. If that's a stretch, the Explorer pace (six days, shorter stages) is the better choice. You don't need to be a mountaineer — there's only one sustained climb (Stake Pass) — but you do need to be trained for consecutive days on your feet. We'll tell you honestly if we don't think a pace is right for you.
When should I walk it?
April to October is the window. May and September are often the best compromise — settled weather, long days, quieter trails. June through August are busiest and warmest but you get the longest daylight. We don't book the Cumbria Way between November and March because the high passes become genuinely unreliable in winter weather, and short daylight hours make the longer days uncomfortable.
Do you include luggage transfer?
Yes — daily transfers between accommodations, point-to-point, with a 20 kg allowance per bag. You walk with a daypack only. For remote sections like Great Langdale to Rosthwaite where there's no direct road access, we coordinate with established Lake District transfer operators who know the alternate routes.
What kind of accommodation do you book?
Family-run B&Bs, guesthouses, and traditional Lake District inns. All have en-suite bathrooms, breakfast included, and drying facilities for wet boots. We avoid hotel chains. Where a village has limited options — Great Langdale, for instance, where there are only two suitable properties — we book as far in advance as possible.
Can I walk it solo?
Yes, and many do. We book accommodation with single-occupancy rates and provide emergency contact numbers. The route is well-signed, and you'll meet other walkers most days. If you've never walked a long trail solo before, we'd suggest starting at Ulverston rather than Carlisle — you'll be walking in the conventional direction and meeting more walkers headed the same way.
What's the realistic total cost?
The Classic package starts at £609 per person and includes accommodation, breakfasts, luggage transfer, the Trail Book, GPX files, and on-trail support. On top of that, budget roughly £25–35 per day for lunch and dinner, plus travel to Ulverston and from Carlisle. For a five-day trip, most people spend around £150–200 on food and £80–120 on travel. So a realistic all-in figure for a couple is around £1,500–1,700.
Not sure what shape your trip should be?
The Cumbria Way is the kind of trail I always end up recommending to people who've done the West Highland Way and want something quieter. Same fells country, half the foot traffic, and you get to walk through Borrowdale rather than around it. The pacing matters most — most people get the days wrong on their first try, and we'll get yours right.
Notes from Big Trails
From the trail journal.
Other trails we run.
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