Out of the back of Millom Station we head south on the coast path through an area that shows signs of previous industry. (no photograph, don’t know why). In its heyday, Millom Ironworks was one of the largest in the world, but was forced to close in 1968 after a failure to attract investment for new steel making processes. Since its demise, efforts have been made to transform the pits and slag heaps into a local nature reserve which opened in 2002 .

Leaving the car outside the pub, we stock up on what look like fabulous sandwiches in the small bakery and start walking out of the village.

Out of the station at Askam we walk through the dull streets of the village to a path leading out to the coast – there’s been a lot of rain recently so a small deviation is necessary.

Back in 2017 we spent a night in a hotel at St. Bees, on our way up to Gretna Green to get married. This is not our van but it seemed appropriate at the time. Today we are setting out from the same hotel to drive to Drigg – a village some 13 miles down the coast – and then walk back.

On the OS map there is no clear path along the coast from Bardsea, apart from an initial stretch along a dirt track at the back of the beach. So, after much rumination we decide to try it anyway – the beach is enormous and the water very far away.

The woods to our right mark the edges of Bardsea Country Park and Sea Wood, both of which will make it difficult to join the road if the beach proves too troublesome – I’m really hoping this won’t prove necessary.

Today could not be more different from yesterday – we open the curtains to a blazing sun in a brilliant blue sky and according to the weather forecast this will continue all day. Hooray!

It is one of those mornings when I ask myself why we are doing this – it’s pouring with rain and to get to the footbridge at Greenodd we have to risk life and limb to cross four lanes of fast moving traffic. One more battered old Cumbria Coast sign points us in the right direction.