King Charles Coast Path - Sunderland to Hartlepool (★★★★☆)

This year I have been ticking off sections of coast in the North East of England, and on this walk I tick off another section and find an unexpected gem, with a walk from Sunderland round to Hartlepool.

The walk starts with humble beginnings, as I head out of Sunderland train station - and then head west to join up with the coast path, as it makes its way around Sunderland Docks.

For this first section there is not much to report back on, as the route past the docks is not very exciting, but then after heading down a not very promising looking road - with a barbed wire fence to the left -  we head under the railway and pop out by the coast.

At the coast the heavy duty fencing continues on the left hand side (still topped with barbed wire) - but the route heads out onto an old promenade at Hendon Beach, and from here it all gets a lot more promising.

For the next phase, I am following the sea line along the cliffs, walking out among all the dog walkers heading down from the houses to the right.

After completing a stretch along these cliffs, I come across a path heading down onto the beach below - and figure that it is time to do some walking at beach level. 

Looking back the way I have come from on the beach

Some of the furniture down on the beach

From here I could have continued round on the beach, as the route ahead was clear, but seeing that I would be doing a long stretch along the next beach - I instead opted to head back up, and round over the cliffs for the next stretch.

The view from back up top

Having had a stretch up top, going past the uncomfortably named Pincushion rocks, I head back down to the beach - and continue along the beach to Seaham.

Looking back from the next bit of beach (with the sea stack at Pincushion rocks to the right)

And looking forwards, with the beach running on to Seaham lying ahead

For the first phase of this beach walk, I have the beach essentially to myself, taking in the cliffs as I head by.

But as time goes by - and as I get closer to Seaham - the beach starts to get busier and busier - with many people out collecting stones on the beach. And after looking up this slightly odd activity, I find out that these people were out hunting for sea glass.

This glass is not naturally forming - instead it is waste glass dumped into the sea by a glass factory operational in Seaham from 1853 and 1921. This glass has then been weathered during its time in the sea, and is then collected up by sea glass hunters on this beach.

Taking no part in this strange activity, I head up into Seaham - stopping off at the shop to get some supplies for the day - and its a very attractive, and well presented, seaside town - with lots of cafes and fish and chips shops to visit. 

A visitor asks me where certain points of interest are, and I just shrug and point in random directions in response - but even though they probably won't find what they are looking for today, it is nice to see lots of visitors coming here for the day.

Passing Terrace Green at Seaham

From here, I have to stay slightly inland, to navigate around Seaham harbor, but after a stretch following the road through Seaham, a path opens up on the left - which continues out to Nose's Point.

On the path to Nose's Point

One of the benches at Nose's Point

Here, the path cuts inland a bit - to get around the path of a stream - before returning along the cliff line - with the sea running alongside on the left, and with the train line on the right (with that being the line that brought me up to Sunderland this morning).

On this walk, you can alternatively use the train stops at Seaham or Horden - which provide alternative entry and exit points for a shorter route. This means that you can skip the less exciting section passing Sunderland Docks - but it does also mean that you miss that early stretch along the near empty beach, on the way past Hendon. Alternatively you could finish early at Horden.

After heading past Chourdon Point, the path crosses over the railway line (they have traffic lights these days to tell you when not to cross), and then back under the railway at Hawthorn Dene Viaduct.

There used to be a grand house near here (Hawthorn Towers), which had its own private railway station next to this viaduct - and if you like a quiet beach, the path left before crossing the railway line will take you down to Hawthorn Hive beach - a very quiet and secluded beach below these cliffs. 

There are also routes up through Hawthorn Dene - and so this is a good spot to pay a visit if you have some spare time.

Hawthorn Dene Viaduct

From here the path joins up with the railway line for a bit - but despite the slightly garish fencing, it is an enjoyable cliff top stroll along this section.

Sea to the left, railway to the right

There are none today, but these stretches of coast are good for spotting porpoises, so it is worth keeping an eye out to sea to see if you can spot these - and here you get the enjoyment of having a cliff top view, without some of the death defying sections that other coastlines sometimes offer up.

Soon, the path leaves behind the railway, and we head out along the cliffs - while the railway stays inland - and then we pass Shippersea Point and Shot Rock - before cutting inland at Busier Holes (where the path meets up with a car park at Easington).

Coming up to Easington

Looking out at deserted beaches

Having headed back out to the cliff route (after passing Easington), there is a bit of an overgrown section to clear, but fairly soon you start to descend down to sea level, and then at Warren House Gill you can swap from the cliff route onto a beach that is almost always deserted.

Down on the beach

A bit further down the beach you reach Dene Mouth, and from here there is another potential diversion as you can walk through Castle Eden Dene from here (UPDATE - I have walked this section and while I wouldn't recommend it in winter, this would be a great walk on a hot day, as it is cut into the rock and very cool to walk through. If you do walk this way, there is a left and right route that takes you through to Castle Eden Dene - and I suggest the right route, as the left one goes through a long dark tunnel that took a bit of courage to walk through!).

Today, I continue to head down the coast - although at Dene Mouth I swap inland, to continue my walk along the cliffs. After passing Blackhall Rocks the next phase of the walk passes round the holiday parks on the outskirts of Hartlepool - and this section is a less enjoyable.

Here you have to endure a few overgrown sections as you navigate around the holiday parks, but then the path continues onto Hartlepool Golf Course, which is a much more enjoyable walk (well done to the golfing people!) - before dropping down onto the beach, just past a bit of a river coming down to meet the sea.

Passing the golf course

From here we stay on the beach until we reach the Headland at Hartlepool, which has an old fort, and much of the historic parts of Hartlepool.

This headland has a long history, and forms the older part of town - with much more of a traditional seaside town vibe. By contrast, we just won't talk about the sections with the holiday homes, and the more modern housing.

14th Century Hartlepool Headland

19th Century Hartlepool Headland

From here the final task is to get to Hartlepool train station - and because we have to get around the docks, there is no nice way of doing this. Instead we follow the A1048, and then the A179, before finally reaching the Marina - just before we lose our will to live.

The Marina is enjoyable to walk about, however, and then from there, it is a short walk to the station - and a train home.

The section through Hartlepool does ruin the overall quality of the walk somewhat. Over time I have thought about different ways of doing this walk - hence my exploration up Dene Mouth - but there are limited transport options once you do head inland.

This rather forces you to finish up in Hartlepool, and complete that odyssey around the docks, with the only other option I can really think of being to head up Dene Mouth, and then either cut up to Seaham, or down to Stockton (both fairly long walks).

Total Distance: 23.9 miles

Total Ascent: 1,345 feet

Enjoyment Rating : ⭐⭐⭐⭐ ★ / 5

The prior section of coastline is included in a writeup of the walk from Newcastle to Sunderland.

A further writeup for a walk from Sunderland is at the end of the following link, with a walk from Sunderland to Durham along the Weardale Way.

Disclaimer: This writeup provides a narrative of what to expect rather than a route guide to follow. The route is covered by the 88 and 93 OS Landranger maps (links redirect to Amazon). The route is in general well way-marked, although there are no markings for where you can join the beaches - here use the map to work out where you can get on and off and keep an eye on tide times.