Furness and Cartmel

Furness and Cartmel are the two peninsulas that push south into Morecambe Bay below the Lake District. On this site the area covers Ulverston, Barrow-in-Furness, the village of Cartmel and the Edwardian resort of Grange-over-Sands, and it also takes in Arnside, which faces Grange across the Kent estuary.

This is a landscape of sands and salt marsh, limestone hills and estuary light. Cartmel has its priory, its racecourse and a food reputation out of all proportion to its size. Grange has a mile of promenade and the walk up to the Hampsfell Hospice. Ulverston is a busy market town with the Hoad Monument on the hill above it and a museum to Stan Laurel, who was born there. Barrow, the peninsula's working town, has Furness Abbey on its edge.

It is good for gentle walking, food, and days that do not depend on mountain weather. The bay is extraordinary at any time of year, and the guided Cross Bay Walks in summer are a once in a lifetime outing. Spring and early autumn are lovely here, when the bay is busy with wading birds and the lanes are quiet. In winter the peninsulas are often drier and milder than the central fells, which makes them a sound choice when the mountain forecast is poor.

Never walk on the sands of Morecambe Bay without the official guide. The tides come in fast, there are channels and quicksands, and people have died. Inland, the A590 is the only main road in and can be slow behind holiday traffic in summer.