Helpful
Information

Walk Day

This page provides a brief overview of walk day arrangements for the Keswick to Barrow (K2B) Walk and Coniston to Barrow (C2B) Walk, particularly to assist friends and family of walkers. If you are participating in the event as a walker or as a formal team supporter, it is essential that you familiarise yourself with some of the more detailed information contained elsewhere on the K2B website. In particular, walkers should refer to website menu options: THE WALK / THE WALK ROUTE and THE WALK / EVENT INSTRUCTIONS. Team supporters should refer to THE WALK / TEAM SUPPORT, where you can download a detailed Support Vehicle Instructions document, Support Vehicle Number template, and a Team Support Arrangements sheet.

What to wear on the walk

The walk is mostly on hard-surfaced paths and tarmac roads, so we recommend lightweight "running" gear (not walking boots and woolly jumpers), ie:
Trainers
Socks
Shorts or comfortable trousers
T-shirt
An additional layer such as a sweatshirt or hoodie (to be worn or carried as necessary)

What else to bring

Try to carry as little as possible, and arrange to meet up with your support team for changes of clothes, extra food, etc. We suggest that you consider carrying the following:
Lightweight energy snacks
Drinks (not essential as free drinks are provided on the route)
Mobile phone (fully charged)
Waterproof clothing (it often rains in the Lake District)
Suncream (the weather in the Lake District is very unpredictable)
Blister plasters (not essential as first aid is provided on the route)
Any medicines that you may need

Before you set off for the start

Check the K2B website at keswick2barrow.co.uk to confirm that the event is running to plan. This is especially important if the weather is bad, as late changes may be made to walk arrangements for health & safety reasons.

How and when to arrive at the start

The easiest way is to catch a "Happy Bus" according to our published schedule, but you must book this in advance. If you're making your own way to the start, make sure you allow plenty of time as the traffic at the start can be quite heavy.

Walk start times are as follows:
0530 prompt for K2B competition runners (competing runners must be pre-registered)
0530-0630 for K2B walkers after all the runners have started
0830-0900 for C2B walkers staggered over a half hour period

The K2B start is at Rough How Bridge on the A591, three miles south of Keswick, in a field adjacent to the main road. There is strictly no parking at the start. It is essential that vehicle drivers follow the instructions of marshals to drop off walkers efficiently and keep traffic in the area flowing smoothly.

OS X (Eastings) 330130
OS Y (Northings) 520565
Nearest Post Code CA12 4TF
Lat (WGS84) N54:34:32 (54.575449)
Long (WGS84) W3:04:57 (-3.082376)
LR NY301205
mX -343128
mY 7245056

The C2B start is at Coniston Sports & Social Club. Shepherds Bridge Lane gets very busy, and a north-to-south one-way system will operate in the lane to minimise congestion. There is strictly no parking in the lane or at the sports club. It is essential that vehicle drivers follow the instructions of marshals to drop off walkers efficiently and keep traffic in the area flowing smoothly.

Coniston Sports and Social Club,
Shepherds Bridge Lane,
Coniston,
LA21 8AL.

In Case of Emergency (ICE) phone 07523 838843

In case of emergency, if a threat to life is posed, a crime is in progress, or a serious accident has occurred, call 999, and then call ICE. Please also call ICE if you are dropping out of the walk and are unable to inform an official locally, so that walker records can be updated and assistance can be co-ordinated if required. The ICE number is printed on walker lanyards.

Meeting walkers at Checkpoints

At most checkpoints there are parking facilities for support vehicles. Supporters can check on the progress of individual walkers and teams by asking the checkpoint operator to look up this information. It is very helpful if you know the walker's team name and team number. There is no access for support vehicles to Checkpoint 2 at Elterwater, Checkpoint 4 at Water Park, and Checkpoint 6 at Rake Cross Roads.  These restrictions are to protect the safety of walkers on particularly narrow or awkward sections of the route, and will be enforced by police and marshals. For full details of support vehicle routes, checkpoint locations, etc, please download and print the Support Vehicle Instructions document from the K2B website, see THE WALK / TEAM SUPPORT.

The finish

Hawcoat Park Sports and Social Club,
Hawcoat Lane,
Barrow-in-Furness,
Cumbria,
LA14 4HF.

Finishing times: Finish times vary enormously, depending on many factors, such as the fitness and experience of the participant. The fastest runners complete in about 4 hours. The slowest walkers complete in about 16 hours. The vast majority of walkers on both the K2B and C2B complete between mid-afternoon and early-evening.

Car parking: Please park on Hawcoat Lane or on the surrounding roads, except in locations where parking restrictions apply. Parking within the Hawcoat Park Sports Club grounds is reserved for officials and emergency services. Car parking is also available at Furness Academy on Thorncliffe Road, which is to the rear of the Sports and Social Club. Entrance to the Sports Club from Furness Academy is by a small gate off the footpath between the school car park and the Sports Club grounds.

Accommodation

If you're visiting the area and looking for overnight accommodation, we generally recommend that you find a hotel or guest house in the area of Barrow-in-Furness, Dalton-in-Furness, or Ulverston. That way, you can catch one of our Happy Buses to the start, walk back to Barrow, and you're close to your accommodation. Note that we do not provide transport from the finish back to the start. We suggest that you take a look at the hotel booking facility on this website at SHOP / ACCOMMODATION.