Seascale Beach

Just under five miles and about two hours on the flat, south from Seascale's seafront along the beach and the dune path towards Drigg, returning on the track behind the golf links. It starts at the Seascale seafront car park beside the station, which is free and rarely more than half full; the Cumbrian Coast railway stops here and at Drigg, so a one-way version by train is easy. Miles of firm open sand make this one of the best places on the west coast to let a dog properly run, with the Isle of Man on the horizon on a clear day. The dunes at Drigg are a nature reserve with ground-nesting terns and ringed plover in the spring and summer, so leads from the golf links southwards, and the Irt estuary channels are dangerous on a flooding tide.