Coastwalk 2002

In 2002  one Coastguard team started a walk which would lead to 230 Coastguard Rescue Teams walking an epic 4,300 mile relay walk round Britain’s mainland coastline.  The walk took almost 3 years to complete and they were welcomed back at Land’s End by BBC Spotlight presenter David George who fired the starting maroon back in January 2002.   The Jubilee Sailing Trust charity who benefited from this venture, promotes the integration of people of all physical abilities through the challenge of tall ship sailing.   The Jubilee Sailing Trust thanked the teams at a reception aboard their tall ship “Tenacious” and presented a beautiful framed print of the vessel’s plans, which now hangs in the MCA Training Centre.
 

The teams have walked through long summer days, gales, snowstorms, rain and fog.  They have been ferried across estuaries by RNLI lifeboats and hovercraft, and been guided across one by the Queen’s Guide to the Sands.  During the walk they have  attended to unexploded bombs, and rescued people, cows, sheep and even a horse which had decided to swim out to sea.  At least five naturist beaches have been crossed and in one case two members of the team stripped off to comply with the local rules. The walkers’ daily journal is being compiled to form a permanent record of this unique walk, and it is hoped a limited number of copies will be published. “Coastie” the mascot has survived the trip, and so has a bottle of rum .