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 The pretty well visited West Cumbrian village of St. Bees is found 4 miles south of Whitehaven.
Several interesting old houses feature amongst those which line the long main street descending to sea level and a coastline deservedly designated a Heritage Area.
St. Bees Head, a major sea cliff, is a bird-watchers Elysium and one of England's main sea-bird colonies with a miscellany of bird life including razor-bills, puffins, guillemots and herring gulls.
 Alfred Wainwrights famous 190 mile Coast to Coast Walk begins from St. Bees and passes through and over the Lake District, Yorkshire Dales and North Yorkshire Moors to terminate at Robin Hood's Bay on England's east coast. (Contact the Whitehaven Tourist Information Centre for details.)
St. Bees was named after St Bega, who, according to legend, was shipwrecked off the coast in the 9th Century after fleeing Ireland and an arranged marriage. The saga goes on to relate that on arrival she sought land on which to settle. She was told by the local lord, she could have all the land which was covered by snow on the following day. Bearing in mind that it was mid-summer at the time, it seemed unlikely. However, the next morning saw that snow had indeed fallen and St Bega was granted an area of land about 3 miles in length of the coastline.
 She founded a priory on which now stands the 12th Century Church of St. Marys and St. Bega, which remained a priory until the dissolution in 1539. This is a fine building of much historical interest.
Excavations in 1981 of the former Chancel, unearthed a female skeleton and a lead coffin in which was the well preserved body of a male thought to be someone of local prominence. A “history area” in the church and the museum in Whitehaven provide information on what became known as “St Bees Man”.
 A television programme, “Frozen in Time, Mummies Forever” featured the find and was shown in England and America.
The whole of the Cumbrian West Coast, Furness Peninsula and the lakes and mountains of the Lake District are easily reached from this comfortable unspoiled resort of St. Bees with it's excellent range of welcoming accommodation, pubs, cafes and restaurants.
How to get there:
By rail: St. Bees is on the Barrow to Carlisle West Coast Rail Link.
From the South, take the London to Scotland West Coast main line and change at Lancaster for St. Bees.
From the North, change at Carlisle for St. Bees.
By road: Reach us on the B 5345 from the A595 between Calder Bridge and Egremont.
Local links:
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