England Coast path part 82 Mablethorpe to Skegness

 Friday 19h September 2025

Miles 16.06 Miles     

Elevation Gain  85 feet   

Total days walking 87 (excluding the swcp)

Total mileage 1786.59 (including the swcp)

Another pleasant night, this time at the Victoria guest house with its lively bar, which, after a hot day of walking, was a very welcome place to enjoy a nice cool beer.

Comfy beds & quiet room, we woke to another bright sunny morning, leaving early to beat the heat of the day, down the road & onto the promenade, a gentle breeze blowing into our faces, with the usual early morning dog walkers & cyclists, commuting to work?

With the sun warming the air, there is once again an abundance of Butterflies in the air. A passer-by shows us a large white & small yellow butterfly that is sitting between its wings, almost taking a piggyback. We watch for a minute before continuing on along the promenade past some elegantly painted beach huts & some not so.

We pass several cafes that are open, but it's too early to stop & some that are closed up for the season. It's approaching 10am, we come to another coffee stop, which opens at 10, so we wait for a few minutes, we can see the staff getting prepared, we are not the only ones waiting & we soon get into conversation with Brian & Betty, who are on a holiday with their caravan & dog visiting the area.

The café is now getting really busy, we have eaten our fill & once again set off on our way.

Further on, we can hear the most incredible volume of Geese quacking away, the noise is intense, the lake is by a residential area & apparently, the noise starts at 4am!

Continuing along the path, we pass the North Sea Observatory, and we pop in, but it's basically just a café with a lecture room, not what we were expecting. 

Now nearing Butlins', the famous holiday camps, there is an increase in people on the path & more cafes & pubs, two very drunk boys are walking along carrying their drinks in plastic cups, they are playing some music out of their Bluetooth speaker, Lesley comments on the great choice of music & the drunk conversation begins. They are away in a static caravan for a ''Holiday'' with their partners who are walking on ahead. Neither of the lads work, one is ex-army, the other, we don't know his work history.

We get on to the subject of our walk along the English coast path  & cannot believe when we say we have walked from Weston-Super-Mare to Hunstanton in north Norfolk along the south coast Thames estuary, etc & from the Scottish border to the place we are standing, which is increasing with every step

We take a selfie with them!  

We never got their names, but they, too, have walked some of the ECP with us & now their picture is featured in this blog for posterity. With the help of the entertainment from the lads, a mile or two has slipped past unnoticed  & now they must leave us as we have arrived at the pub where they were headed; they have lost sight of their partners, but hopefully they will have met up.

We continued on. Lesley was under the impression that Butlins was our end destination, but alas, it's about another 3 or 4 miles to go into the heart of Skegness & the train station.

Now approaching the outskirts of Skegness, we take time out to yet again visit a cafe, the walk has been a long one in a hot sun, no shade & plodding on hard concrete takes its toll on one's feet.

Ice cold drinks, with a slice of cake, our sugar levels rise again, giving us the energy to walk the final miles through the streets of Skegness, the family entertainment arcades playing various different tunes all mixed up into a cacophony of sound & mixed with the sweet smell of doughnuts & chips drifting in the air, awaking our senses. 

The train station, signaling the end of our trip, is in sight. 

Arriving at the station, we purchase the tickets with only a few minutes before the train to York departs, and we collect the tickets from the ticket office, board the train & relax, another 70 miles of coast path done.
At York, we change platforms & wait for our connection to London King's Cross, then a tube to Victoria Station & a local train for the final leg of our trip home, indoors by 21:30

England Coast path part 81 North summer cotes to Mablethorpe

Thursday 18th September 2025

Miles 13.63 Miles     

Elevation Gain 114 feet   

Total days walking 87 (excluding the swcp)

Total mileage  1770.53 (including the swcp)

Still full from last night's Italian delights, we wake up to a bright sunny morning & prepare ourselves for the day's walking.

Setting off down the road back to the coast path past newly ploughed fields & trimmed hedges, the feeling in the air is that autumn is on its way as the season changes.

Back on the Coast Path, we fire up Strava & set off along the path, a newly constructed path, poorly constructed, basically, just a new fence with the shrubbery cut down & very uneven.

The vegetation is making a comeback, & sadly, if the path is not often used or managed, it will soon be overtaken by nature once again. 

We are now closer to the RAF targets & we are passing by the viewing towers, all locked up & dormant. A little further on, we turn slightly inland & up onto the grassy flood defences. 

We once again see lots of butterflies, dragonflies, wild birds, Muntjac deer & grey wild ponies nibbling at the fruit on the wild apple trees. We have seen far more dragonflies & butterflies this year than in previous years a sign of the changing climate?

We pass the sight of the Tank-on-the-beach. Yes, the TheddleThorpe Tank, a real tank that was driven onto the beach & left, allegedly it was driven there by a relative of someone who was coincidentally visiting on the same day as we were passing by!

The Tank is so famous that it appears on Google Maps.

Nearing the end of the day, we are on the beach next to the sea, so it's time to remove those boots & socks & feel the sand between our toes, so that's what we do for the next mile or so. Soon we need to leave the beach, so we go to the first café we come to, where we have a big mug of tea & a cheese roll while our feet dry in the sun, boots back on & a short walk into town to our Hotel.

 

Private road!

2017-2025

And Relax!

England Coast path part 80 Cleethorpes to Donna Nook, North summer cotes

Wednesday 17th September 2025

Miles 11.41 Miles     

Elevation Gain 28 feet   

Total days walking 87 (excluding the swcp)

Total mileage 1770.53 (including the swcp)

We wake to torrential rain battering against the windows. Luckily, it's a shorter day today & we don't have to check out until 11.00am. Looking at the weather radar, the rain is clearing by about 11.00am.

After a leisurely breakfast, we pack our bags, and the rain is easing so we leave the little house by the sea, straight onto the promenade & the coast path.

Soon we will be in open land, passing the narrow-gauge railway, finally losing sight of Spurn Point across the River Humber. Now walking beside the North Sea with huge wind farms, which, Fact one revolution of a single tower can create enough energy to power a house for up to 29 hours!

The rain has gone & it's fine walking weather, we pass military firing ranges an area where the RAF practice dropping bombs on targets which are located close to the shoreline.

Nothing eventful happens today & we don't take any photos!

Arriving at Donna Nook we turn off down the road to seek out our accommodation. We are early & have to wait for the check-in time, while waiting, we talk to some of the other guests returning from their days out.

Our host returns from walking his dogs, letting us into our apartment & giving us some information about where we can get a good Italian evening meal.

We do indeed go to the Italian restaurant, I have their special, haddock, chips & a pint all for the stately sum of £15.00 Lesley has a huge pizza.

A customer who was disgruntled at waiting for their food marched into the kitchen to be swiftly escorted out by the chef, followed by a shouting match they then left, still hungry!

England Coast path part 79 East Halton to Cleethorpes

Tuesday 16th September 2025

Miles 18.90 Miles     

Elevation Gain 141 feet   

Total days walking 87 (excluding the swcp)

Total mileage 1759.12 (including the swcp)

After a very comfortable night in a warm room, I head over to breakfast. I am the only client in the dining area, and a huge full English breakfast is served, complete with toast & tea. After paying the bill, we prepared for the day's walk. 

It's been raining, but the clouds have gone & the sky is bright, the ground is wet, a slightly different route back to the path, not down the fenced-in path next to the Mercedes car compound, which was also overgrown. 

We start off on pavement, but soon we are in open land traversing through some long grass & obviously not well-used footpaths, and we slowly navigate our way back to the coast path.

 This is day six of walking along the banks of the River Humber from Spurn Point, having taken in Sunk Island with the American RV for accommodation & across the Humber Bridge.

Now on the bank of the Humber, but not for long, as navigation around the refinery is needed, as it happens, & unbeknownst to us, this is the easy part! there is a diversion away from the river & around the oil storage depot, which takes us along the busy A1173, a busy, fast road. The footpath is heavily overgrown with trees & brambles, we fight our way slowly along, there are some parts we can't get through & have to dice with death on the road.  

Safely off the main road & back into the industrial estate, we stop at a nice little café for a drink & snack, then we are on our way back to the path & more diversions. Having navigated our way, we are nearing Grimsby docks, but once again it's a busy industrial area & we are back on a main road around the docks. Once we are past the docks, the path has been deemed a ''private'' a large steel gate banishes our access!  The last few miles along pavements are hard, it's hot & we are longing for the end to come. We arrive tired & hot at our accommodation in Cleethorpes.

The Route

The Evening bit

After a rest & something to eat & drink, we feel we should venture out to see the ''private'' foot path from the other side of the gate. The path is good, and we soon come to the ''closed section'' of the path. Here, the gate has been ripped down & is obviously well used. Approaching the large steel gate from the other side, we can see no reason for the path to be closed! We turn around & walk back into town. On the way back, there are some teenagers doing what teenagers do, just hanging out, getting into conversation (Loose term). We ask them if they know anything about the path being closed. They think it is to stop fishermen dipping their lines too close to the Grimsby Harbour entrance, but I doubt it, the Harbour entrance is not close. After a bit of conversation, they too find it impossible how we have walked so far.

England Coast path part 78 Barrow haven to East Halton near Immingham

Monday 15th September 2025

Miles 11.82 Miles     

Elevation Gain 16 feet   

Total days walking 87 (excluding the swcp)

Total mileage 1740.22 (including the swcp)

A shorter walk today as we knocked off a few miles yesterday. It's a fine sunny morning with a warm, strong south wind. Starting off with a train ride from Barton Humber to Barrow Haven, there are a few people on the platform who are amazed at how far we have walked & wish us luck & good walking.

(If you meet us on our travels, please leave a comment)

Arriving at the station, we exit the train, commencing our day's walking where we left off the previous evening, continuing along the banks of the River Humber, the wind in our faces! We make good progress following the path around an industrial area, but a coast path sign, the first we have seen on this section, points us in the wrong direction. 

It's not immediately picked up by either of us, & we walk a considerable distance before realising, retracing our steps, & guided by a friendly farmer, we are back on the banks of the Humber.

Lots of wildlife, including bees, butterflies, roe deer & birds, as well as numerous small birds and seabirds

Now nearing the end of the day's walk, we turn inland towards our accommodation at the Black Bull public house in East Halton, arriving just before the rain. I settle into a pint of Salt, a pale, very fruity beer.

Looking back towards
The Humber Bridge

England Coast path part 77 Humber Bridge (Hessel) to Barton Humber

Sunday 14th September 2025

Miles 5.47 Miles  (Plus 3.0 miles unrecorded return walk)

Elevation Gain  72 feet   

Total days walking 87 (excluding the swcp)

Total mileage  1731.71 (including the swcp)

Having taken the train up to Newcastle on Friday to visit one of our sons and see his new flat, we spent Saturday with him & his girlfriend. On Friday night, they took us to Tynemouth via the Metro to a small, local restaurant. Tynemouth is a lovely place; on this visit, we were able to see more of it, especially compared to our previous trip when torrential rain kept us hidden in our waterproof clothing during our coastal walk.

We left on Sunday morning to take the train down from Newcastle to York, then York to Hessle. It was a local train, very noisy. Once in Hessle, we gathered ourselves for the week to come. With the forecast looking bleak, we expect to get a soaking.

We arrived earlier than planned, since the weather was forecast to be worse later in the day. 

All set, we start Strava & proceed on our way out of the station towards the Humber Bridge, which we will be walking across. Almost immediately outside someone's house is a table with Apples, pairs & even brown paper bags to help yourself to the fruit. Lesley still wasn't feeling great as she had had an upset stomach during the previous week, so she passed on having any fruit.  

Not long & we start the climb up the steps where we had finished our last walk, ascending the steps onto the Humber Bridge, we get a great sense of being where we love to be, out on a long-distance path with no worries of everyday troubles. It's our special place.

The wind is strong, blowing into our faces, but the sensation & satisfaction of crossing the bridge, we hardly notice the nearly two miles of bridge slipping past, & that's it, we have crossed the Humber bridge spanning the fast-flowing flowing swirling, dirty brown water of the river, the river Humber.

It has taken two days of walking in a westerly direction along the north side of the estuary from Spurn Point & now another two days walking the south side of the estuary in an Easterly direction before we start heading south down the country.

On the south side, we decide to walk further than planned, as it is still relatively early in the day, and the next station along from Burton Humber is Barrow Haven, where on Monday we can get the train too, but not today, as they don't run on Sundays, so it will be a walk back to the hotel an un-recorded walking event as neither of us remembered to start strava so please add on another 3.5 miles to our total! But before we walk this stretch, a conveniently placed café where Jacket potatoes & tea are consumed.

As we approach Barrow Haven, the rain sets in, so with waterproof coats & trousers, we start retracing our steps back to Barton Humber & the George Hotel, our accommodation for the night.

On the Humber Bridge

South side of the Bridge

Not sure about this updated Strava,
Apparently, I swam across the Humber!