South Pier Head

The walk out to South Pier Head in Maryport takes you straight into the town's maritime past. It's a proper bit of Victorian engineering - a solid stone pier jutting into the Solway Firth with that bracing, salt-tinged air you get nowhere else inland. The pier head itself is modest but genuine, and from the end you'll get views across the water towards Scotland on a clear day, which isn't guaranteed given the weather round these parts.

You're looking at a straightforward twenty-minute round trip from the town centre, more if you dawdle and take photos. It's the sort of thing that works best on a decent afternoon when you can actually see something rather than squinting through drizzle. Families with younger kids might find it a bit of a nothing after ten minutes - there's no cafe, no gift shop, no amusements. But if you've got walkers in the group or you're just after a bit of coastal air without the crowds of Morecambe Bay, it delivers.

Stay at Harbour Side Caravan Park - it's practically on your doorstep, just 0.3 miles away - and you can knock this off before breakfast or use it as an evening stroll. If you're basing yourself further out at Greysouthen, it's still an easy drive in. The pier works best as part of a proper Maryport morning, wandering the old docks and checking out the maritime museum nearby. Don't come expecting drama. Come for the quiet bit of history and the chance to stand where traders and fishermen have stood for generations.