I’ve just come back from a glorious winter’s walk with the good lady wife along the Lincolnshire Coast. We parked near Pleasure Island, to the South of Cleethorpes by about a mile or so and walked all the way along the front at Cleethorpes, then along the sea wall and in to the docks at Grimsby and out again in to the town itself before catching the train back to Cleethorpes for the princely sum of £3.60.
The walk is 6 miles long in total and easy going, being completely flat and for the most part hugs the coast along the sea wall before turning inland through the fish docks and in to the town centre in Grimsby. The section around the town of Cleethorpes is very clean and well-kept with all the usual amusements and plenty of places to eat and drink. As you progress between Cleethorpes and Grimsby you get good distant views of the Humber Estuary and the litter increases too! The docks are a mix of old, new and derelict, which I find fascinating and as you leave them you walk through an industrial area in to the newly paved and pedestrianised streets of Grimsby.
The town of Cleethorpes is reasonable in size with just one main street running through the centre, which is set back a couple of hundred metres behind and parallel to the sea front. The town of Grimsby is much bigger with several main streets, an indoor shopping area housing all the main retailers and several other retail parks. This is the fifth time we’ve done this walk and I can recommend a drink in the Weatherspoons outside the Train Station whilst you wait for the train. In Cleethorpes I can recommend Ernie Becket’s fish and chip restaurant and also the Leaking Boot fish and chip restaurant. If you fancy something a bit better Figs Restaurant has a good lunch menu at a reasonable price.
Please find below some pictures and a couple of route maps. From the car park turn towards Cleethorpes, with the sea on your right shoulder. Keep going along the front with the sea on your right shoulder as far as you can walk ignoring any signs about limited access until you can go no further, about 3 1/2 miles. Turn left here along an obvious cinder path for a hundred metres or so to emerge on a road. Cross straight over and head for the 1970s looking office tower, which is the HQ of Young’s Seafood. From the front of the tower block head to the right past the yacht harbour on your right, over a level crossing and out towards the large harbour offices with a clock tower on top. Once there go under the dual carriageway and turn right then down the first promising looking street to the left. A few hundred yards down the street you will come to a Tesco Extra where you turn right and cross the river bridge and then immediately left past the museum of fishing and in to the pedestrianised area of the town. There are lots of possible roads both in the docks and outside; however, if you get lost just head for the town and you’ll have no problems.
