MOORS & COAST
NORTH YORK MOORS AND THE COAST
Within about an hour's driving distance, we have included Historic Houses and Abbeys, exceptionally beautiful gardens, our favourite eating places, and a large variety of activities. The so-called Dinosaur Coast which stretches from Saltburn to Scarborough has some of the highest cliffs in England and delightfully quaint fishing villages like Staithes, which inspired The Staithes Group of Artists founded by Dame Laura Knight, and photographers like Sutcliffe. For wild-life lovers, the moors and coast are home to many fascinating birds and animals, some endangered. Above all, it is a great walking area, sometimes very challenging but also for more gentle wandering with “leaning on the gate” time to admire the view.
MOUNT GRACE PRIORY, near
OSMOTHERLEY. (English Heritage and National Trust) Set in woodland at the foot of the Cleveland Hills, this is a lovely relaxing place to visit on a fine Spring or Summer’s day. The best preserved Carthusian priory in Britain, and there is also a 13th Century manor house on the same site.
Near Mount Grace is OSMOTHERLEY, the start of the Lyke Wake Walk, which follows an old coffin trail and is a complete crossing of the North York Moors from west to east. It runs from Osmotherley in the west to Ravenscar on the east coast. It passes a few miles from Ingleby Manor on Urra Moor, 1,489 ft, its highest point, and the lights of the walkers on the moors can be seen in the middle of the night in summer as they face the challenge of completing the forty-mile route in under 24 hours. The Golden Lion (01609 883526) serves reliably good food.
At INGLEBY CROSS near Osmotherley The Joiner’s Shop is a new café who roast their own coffee (and sell it) and serve very tasty snacks and cakes.
Near Mount Grace is OSMOTHERLEY, the start of the Lyke Wake Walk, which follows an old coffin trail and is a complete crossing of the North York Moors from west to east. It runs from Osmotherley in the west to Ravenscar on the east coast. It passes a few miles from Ingleby Manor on Urra Moor, 1,489 ft, its highest point, and the lights of the walkers on the moors can be seen in the middle of the night in summer as they face the challenge of completing the forty-mile route in under 24 hours. The Golden Lion (01609 883526) serves reliably good food.
At INGLEBY CROSS near Osmotherley The Joiner’s Shop is a new café who roast their own coffee (and sell it) and serve very tasty snacks and cakes.
THIRSK is home toThe World of James Herriot, a museum celebrating the local vet made famous by the TV series and films. Some of the instruments once used by vets make you shudder.
Near Thirsk, in the pretty village of FELIXKIRK, just under the famous (or infamous) Sutton Bank, The Carpenter’s Arms serves good food. Sutton Bank also has a Gliding Club.
Near Thirsk, in the pretty village of FELIXKIRK, just under the famous (or infamous) Sutton Bank, The Carpenter’s Arms serves good food. Sutton Bank also has a Gliding Club.
KILBURN, with its famous White Horse cut out on the hillside, which can be seen for miles around, is the home for the workshops of “Mousey Thompson” furniture makers whose trademark is a mouse carved into the furniture. Their café and shop here are well worth a visit, and the Bakewell Tart is the best I have tasted – they must have a Mary Berry-standard home baker.
OLDSTEAD – According to TripAdvisor, The Michelin-Star Black Swan (01347 868387) at Oldstead is The Best Fine Dining Restaurant of the World 2017, but you must book well in advance.
COXWOLD – Shandy Hall was the home of Laurence Sterne, the author of “Tristram Shandy”, who was chaplain here from 1760 until he died in 1768. The body of Oliver Cromwell is said to be buried at nearby Newburgh Priory, the family home of Earl Fauconberg, and to have been brought here by his daughter Mary, wife of Lord Fauconberg.
HELMSLEY – Helmsley is a gem of a market town with lots of small, interesting coffee shops, restaurants and pubs as well as an ancient castle(EH) Walled Garden and Duncombe Parkwhich has the National Bird of Prey Centre. Market Day Friday. The half-hour journey from Ingleby along Bilsdale is a joy, the moors rising up on either side of the valley. Halfway along, Spout House is a 16th Century cruck-framed thatched dwelling, and ten minutes before Helmsley, Rievaulx Abbeyand Terraces are on your right. Ryedale Arts and Music Festival July.
OLDSTEAD – According to TripAdvisor, The Michelin-Star Black Swan (01347 868387) at Oldstead is The Best Fine Dining Restaurant of the World 2017, but you must book well in advance.
COXWOLD – Shandy Hall was the home of Laurence Sterne, the author of “Tristram Shandy”, who was chaplain here from 1760 until he died in 1768. The body of Oliver Cromwell is said to be buried at nearby Newburgh Priory, the family home of Earl Fauconberg, and to have been brought here by his daughter Mary, wife of Lord Fauconberg.
HELMSLEY – Helmsley is a gem of a market town with lots of small, interesting coffee shops, restaurants and pubs as well as an ancient castle(EH) Walled Garden and Duncombe Parkwhich has the National Bird of Prey Centre. Market Day Friday. The half-hour journey from Ingleby along Bilsdale is a joy, the moors rising up on either side of the valley. Halfway along, Spout House is a 16th Century cruck-framed thatched dwelling, and ten minutes before Helmsley, Rievaulx Abbeyand Terraces are on your right. Ryedale Arts and Music Festival July.
The Black Swan and Tearoom, Mannion Bistro in the centre of Helmsley and The Walled Garden
with Café on the edge of Duncombe Park are all very good eating places. The Trattoria
in Helmsley Market Square serves good Italian food.
NUNNINGTON HALL (NT), a mellow 17th Century house in lovely gardens on the banks of the River Rye, has the Carlisle Collection of Doll’s Houses.
CASTLE HOWARD, a very grand house designed by Sir John Vanbrugh and Nicholas Hawksmoor, has beautiful gardens, good delicatessen and tea room, and was the main location for “Brideshead Revisited”.
EDEN CAMP, near Malton, will transport you back in time to experience the sights, sounds and smells of war-time Britain, all within the grounds of an original PoW camp.
NEAR MALTON, Scampston Hall and Gardens, designed by Piet Oudolf, shouldn’t be missed if you are a garden enthusiast, and there is also a café with good food.
PICKERING is the end of the line for The North York Moors Steam Railway.
Nearby, at KIRBY MISPERTON, is Flamingo Land Theme Park and the UK’s most visited zoo.
NUNNINGTON HALL (NT), a mellow 17th Century house in lovely gardens on the banks of the River Rye, has the Carlisle Collection of Doll’s Houses.
CASTLE HOWARD, a very grand house designed by Sir John Vanbrugh and Nicholas Hawksmoor, has beautiful gardens, good delicatessen and tea room, and was the main location for “Brideshead Revisited”.
EDEN CAMP, near Malton, will transport you back in time to experience the sights, sounds and smells of war-time Britain, all within the grounds of an original PoW camp.
NEAR MALTON, Scampston Hall and Gardens, designed by Piet Oudolf, shouldn’t be missed if you are a garden enthusiast, and there is also a café with good food.
PICKERING is the end of the line for The North York Moors Steam Railway.
Nearby, at KIRBY MISPERTON, is Flamingo Land Theme Park and the UK’s most visited zoo.
DALBY FOREST, on the southern slopes of the moors, has an Activity Centre with café, ability-graded cycle trails, waymarked walks, orienteering course, bike hire. Go-Ape
high-wire course, badger watching evenings.
DANBY LODGE NORTH YORK MOORS CENTRE Lots of information on the area, maps and books and a Gallery showing local artists’ work. Café, but we have found the food and service poor, so we go to Stonehouse Café and Bakery nearby, see below.
Stonehouse Bakery and café is in Danby village, not far from the Moors Centre, and serves good home-made soup and other hot food as well as selling their own bread and cakes to take out. Ideal place to stop when out walking on a cold day or to collect a picnic.
DANBY LODGE NORTH YORK MOORS CENTRE Lots of information on the area, maps and books and a Gallery showing local artists’ work. Café, but we have found the food and service poor, so we go to Stonehouse Café and Bakery nearby, see below.
Stonehouse Bakery and café is in Danby village, not far from the Moors Centre, and serves good home-made soup and other hot food as well as selling their own bread and cakes to take out. Ideal place to stop when out walking on a cold day or to collect a picnic.
GREAT FRYUP DALE Yorkshire Cycle Hub
(01287 669098) with café, bike shop, workshop, bike hire and repairs. Stunning Great Fryup Dale is one of our favourite walking areas and this new venture is a great place for cyclists with beautiful scenic routes on or off road.
HUTTON LE HOLE “The prettiest village in England” is nestled in the heart of the North York Moors National Park and is home to the Ryedale Folk Museum, an open-air museum on a 6-acre site with collections in 20 atmospheric thatched historic buildings showing local rural life from the Iron Age to the 1950’s. Visitors can share in wheel-hooping, wood-turning and rope-making demonstrations, workshops and craft courses.
HUTTON LE HOLE “The prettiest village in England” is nestled in the heart of the North York Moors National Park and is home to the Ryedale Folk Museum, an open-air museum on a 6-acre site with collections in 20 atmospheric thatched historic buildings showing local rural life from the Iron Age to the 1950’s. Visitors can share in wheel-hooping, wood-turning and rope-making demonstrations, workshops and craft courses.
GROSMONT owes its size to the discovery of ironstone in 1836 when George Stephenson’s original railway from Whitby to Pickering was being built. It is now the operating centre for the North York Moors Steam Railway. Engine sheds with restored steam locomotives.
GOATHLAND – Scenic village and a stop on The North York Moors Steam Railway and setting as “Aidensfield” in the TV series, “Heartbeat”. Interesting remains of a Roman Road over the moors.
ROBIN HOOD’S BAY and RAVENSCAR, finish of the Lyke Wake Walk. Seals can sometimes be seen basking on the rocks.
WHITBY – Abbey(EH) (657-867 and 1077-1539) – of St Hilda and Caedmon, and setting for “Dracula”. Goth Festivals in spring and autumn will leave your eyes popping!
Whitby Jet and amazing fossils from the Dinosaur Coast can be found for sale in little shops among the narrow streets at the foot of the 199 steps to the Abbey in Whitby Old Town, across the harbour via the swing bridge.
In the heart of Whitby, both Trenchers (01947 603212) and The Magpie (01947 602058) serve very fresh fish and have large menus – and large portions!
SANDSEND, at the foot of towering cliffs, has a lovely beach. Estbek House Restaurant (01947 893424) serves wonderful seafood dishes but pricey. Dinner only.
RUNSWICK BAY for fossil hunting along the so-called Dinosaur Coast.
STAITHES – quaint fishing village where James Cook worked in a chandler’s shop after leaving Great Ayton and before going to sea from Whitby. Also home of the Staithes’ Group of Artists set up by Dame Laura Knight. Art Gallery.
GOATHLAND – Scenic village and a stop on The North York Moors Steam Railway and setting as “Aidensfield” in the TV series, “Heartbeat”. Interesting remains of a Roman Road over the moors.
ROBIN HOOD’S BAY and RAVENSCAR, finish of the Lyke Wake Walk. Seals can sometimes be seen basking on the rocks.
WHITBY – Abbey(EH) (657-867 and 1077-1539) – of St Hilda and Caedmon, and setting for “Dracula”. Goth Festivals in spring and autumn will leave your eyes popping!
Whitby Jet and amazing fossils from the Dinosaur Coast can be found for sale in little shops among the narrow streets at the foot of the 199 steps to the Abbey in Whitby Old Town, across the harbour via the swing bridge.
In the heart of Whitby, both Trenchers (01947 603212) and The Magpie (01947 602058) serve very fresh fish and have large menus – and large portions!
SANDSEND, at the foot of towering cliffs, has a lovely beach. Estbek House Restaurant (01947 893424) serves wonderful seafood dishes but pricey. Dinner only.
RUNSWICK BAY for fossil hunting along the so-called Dinosaur Coast.
STAITHES – quaint fishing village where James Cook worked in a chandler’s shop after leaving Great Ayton and before going to sea from Whitby. Also home of the Staithes’ Group of Artists set up by Dame Laura Knight. Art Gallery.
SALTBURN has an interesting funicular railway from the cliff top to the beach. There is a Surf School
and fish and chips next to the pier.
ROSEDALE IRONSTONE MINES AND RAILWAY AND INGLEBY INCLINE – In the mid 1800s The Ingleby Ironstone & Freestone Mining Company constructed a 20 mile narrow-gauge railway to link with the existing North Yorkshire & Cleveland Railway at Battersby (then Ingleby) Junction. The ironstone was transported over the moor top from Rosedale via Blowith Crossing and “Little Siberia”, where some of the workers lived who operated the machinery which let the full trucks down the steep incline and brought the empty trucks back up. This mineral wealth was then taken to the ironworks in County Durham. The very steep Incline Track is clearly visible on the hillside near Ingleby and the remaining “cinder track” bed of the old railway passes a couple of fields from the Manor. The walk from the Manor to Bank Foot Farm, up Turkey Nab, along the Moors to Blowith Crossing and back down the Incline takes about 3 hours. The view from the top of Turkey Nab or the Incline at nearly 1000 feet is worth the effort of the climb!
ROSEDALE IRONSTONE MINES AND RAILWAY AND INGLEBY INCLINE – In the mid 1800s The Ingleby Ironstone & Freestone Mining Company constructed a 20 mile narrow-gauge railway to link with the existing North Yorkshire & Cleveland Railway at Battersby (then Ingleby) Junction. The ironstone was transported over the moor top from Rosedale via Blowith Crossing and “Little Siberia”, where some of the workers lived who operated the machinery which let the full trucks down the steep incline and brought the empty trucks back up. This mineral wealth was then taken to the ironworks in County Durham. The very steep Incline Track is clearly visible on the hillside near Ingleby and the remaining “cinder track” bed of the old railway passes a couple of fields from the Manor. The walk from the Manor to Bank Foot Farm, up Turkey Nab, along the Moors to Blowith Crossing and back down the Incline takes about 3 hours. The view from the top of Turkey Nab or the Incline at nearly 1000 feet is worth the effort of the climb!
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"And they went way up high onto the Moors and she found just the right place in the deep heather. They had tea in proper china cups, and delicious sandwiches, and small cakes, and special desserts. And they sat in proper picnic chairs as they shared thoughts and chatted. And there they were - way up high - watching the sun set... and the whole world was at their feet."
Penned by a happy regular visitor from North Carolina after just such a picnic.
Penned by a happy regular visitor from North Carolina after just such a picnic.
