- On trail 15.5 mi 24.9 km
- Walking time 6–7 h
- Ascent 200 m 650 ft
- Descent 200 m 650 ft
- Difficulty Easy
Flat marshes and a view into Scotland, with two stretches that can flood.
Section 6: Carlisle to Bowness-on-Solway map
Example stay Hadrian's Wall Path Finish
Cross-check: National Trails route description . The walk follows that page, opened 18 October 2026. Miles named in the questions are the GOV.UK visit page of the same day. Distances on this page are measured between these ends.
The walk
Barely a climb, and the route description asks you not to hurry. The Eden leads out to the Solway, Scotland across the water, with birdlife and a long empty marsh. Bowness-on-Solway is the finish. The King's Arms has the last passport stamp, and the badge and certificate. Between Easter and the end of October the passport is seven stamps along the trail. There is no car park in the village. The route description points you to the 93 bus. The 9-day and 10-day plans split this marsh with a night at Boustead Hill.
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Start of section
Carlisle
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The Solway
Wide views into Scotland, almost no gradient, and the quiet the route description wants you to walk slowly enough to notice. The Eden is the way out of Carlisle onto the marsh.
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The two floods
Dykesfield to Drumburgh, and Port Carlisle into Bowness-on-Solway. A Silloth tide of 9 metres or more can cover them. Boustead Hill, where the longer plans sleep, sits on the first of those two stretches.
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The King's Arms
The last passport stamp, then the badge and certificate. The passport runs from Easter to the end of October, seven stamps along the trail. There is no car park in the village.
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Official finish
Bowness-on-Solway
Section 6: Carlisle to Bowness-on-Solway overview
The ground
- Salt marsh
- River Eden
- Flat
- Tidal
Flat and open. The difficulty is the tide, not the hills. The easiest ground on the trail, and the section the route description tells you to take slowly. The crags are behind you. A night at Boustead Hill, on the longer plans, breaks the marsh into two mornings. Both of those mornings can flood.
Stops
Refreshments
- Carlisle
- King's Arms
Toilets
- No source used for this section names a public toilet
Before you go
Opposite direction
Bowness-on-Solway to Carlisle
You leave Bowness with the tide already in mind: the path can flood back to Port Carlisle, and again between Drumburgh and Dykesfield. The marsh then follows the Eden into Carlisle. The stamp at the King's Arms is at the start of the day, and the hills are still to come.
End of section
Carlisle
Carlisle to Bowness-on-Solway FAQ
How long is Carlisle to Bowness-on-Solway?
This page measures 15.5 mi (24.9 km). The GOV.UK visit page lists 14.75 miles (24 km). The 7-day walks it in one day. The 9-day and 10-day plans stop at Boustead Hill, at 9.3 mi (15.0 km), and finish with 6.1 mi (9.9 km).
When does the Solway flood?
When the Silloth tide is 9 metres or more, on the stretches from Dykesfield to Drumburgh and from Port Carlisle to Bowness-on-Solway. Add one hour to the Silloth time in winter and two hours in summer, and allow an hour either side. Check before you leave Carlisle.
Walk this as a day
Used as Day 7 on the 7-day. Open the planner on that preset, then export a full-trip or per-day GPX.
Open in planner Read the 7-day itinerary
Full-trip and per-day GPX files. Free, no account.
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