In and Around Whitby
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Mailing Address
Lavender House,
c/o The Station House,
Danby
WHITBY
North Yorkshire
YO21 2JL
UP THE COAST
Sandsend
A couple of miles up the coast, Sandsend is a seaside village
popular with the family for its great beach and great coastal view.
A good mix of sand and pebbles and with a stream that runs
down from Mulgrave Woods to the sea that’s great for the kids to
paddle in.
The Vikings landed here when they ransacked the area, you can
discover the remains of the historic alum industry that was once
important here. You can walk along the disused coastal railway and
see the mounds of shale waste at nearby Sandsend Ness (The Cliff
that dominates the scene); these are the legacy of quarrying lasting
over 260 years. An excellent guide to the Sandsend Trail has been
published by the National Park Authority.
Mulgrave Woods are a great place for the family to explore
and there are many pleasant walks available. You can access the
woods on Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday all year, except May. You
may see Mulgrave castle that is built on an earlier 13th century
Castle reduced to ruin because of the civil war, very important in
the area up to the 17th century. In the woods to the west, there is
evidence of an even earlier earthwork motte and bailey fortress
known as Lythe Castle, best viewed in winter due to numerous trees.
Runswick Bay
Runswick Bay, much loved by both artists and holidaymakers
alike, it is a picture-postcard seaside village.
Five miles north of Whitby, the village is split into two
parts. The few houses at the top of the cliffs contrast sharply with
the red-roofed cottages that appear to tumble down the Cliffside.
The beach is accessed via a very steep road and there is a large
public car park near the bottom.
The cottages are protected from the northern gales by Lingrow
Knowle, the crag above on the West side. On the East side you can
see Kettleness. Kettleness once had a village that due to mining,
slipped into the sea one night on December 17, 1829, the occupants
being rescued by a boat that just happened to be there at the time!
Also famous for a Roman Signal Station, positioned nearby. The Bay
in the middle saw several actions in the First World War that sent
several U-Boats to the bottom!
Staithes
The whole area is full
of unique beauty & history, crammed into such a small place. Great
rock pools for the kids to explore on the foreshore in front of
Staithes, well worth a visit.
Once more known as Seaton with the historical Seaton Hall, it
became more associated with the staithe (landing area) down the
ravine as mineral production took over in the area that has in
various forms lasted for several hundreds of years. The present day
Boulby Potash mine is one of the deepest in the UK.
Many boats have been built here, from fishing boats for the
well known fishing industry to boats that were needed to service and
trade the mineral products to and from bigger boats and other local
ports. Now with several staithe’s, the name caught hold.
Captain James Cook is one of many heroes from Staithes. This
is where he got his first love of the sea, trading with the boats
offshore, as he was then working for a grocer. Enough anyway to move
on to Whitby to further his maritime studies.
As the spectacular coastal railway arrived it brought with it
many artists for the unique beauty of the area. They became well
known as the Staithes Group.
Take a trip to Staithes Post Office where you can get books
and leaflets to help you explore the history and the sites of the
area.
Cross over the foot bridge onto the west side. As you cross,
look down facing the land and you will see the area on the bank
where they found a very early staithe. Little known and hidden,
History here takes you back to the Stone Age!
Have a look the Life Boat Station; they have been saving
life’s here for well over a hundred years. The cliff that starts
here ends up further north as Boulby Cliffs, the highest in England.
On the East side when the tidies out take a trip onto the
fossil strewn foreshore, see if you can see where they struggled to
cut out a landing bay for ore boats. There are many rock pools
teaming with much of our native marine life. Remember to leave as
you found and watch that tide coming back, you don’t want to
stranded here to struggle up the cliffs. But if you start early, you
can, weather permitting, spend quite a few hours here and even walk
down to the hidden Port Mulgrave and onto Runswick Bay.
DOWN THE COAST
Robin's Hood Bay
Start by parking your car at the top of a very steep cliff
and walk down a twisting, turning, cobbled street to the Sea. On
either side of you a village clings to the Cliffside.
Robin's Hood Bay has
been known under various names and nothing exists in fact to
determine where its name really came from. Known as Bay Town, Robin
Hood's Town and Robbyn Huddes Bay.
Viking raiders settled here. Fifty fishermen lived here in
1536, with the catching and drying of fish it was a thriving
industry with 130 fishermen working here until the end of the 19th
century.
More famous though was the illicit trade of Smuggling.
Because of its position between cliff and the mire like conditions
for the access the locals were able to exploit the natural
conditions to their advantage. The warren like maize of streets and
even a reputed covered bottom to top passage way from and between
the houses, made it almost impossible for the law!
As you stand in the village with the stream that splits it in
two you can just imagine how hard it was for the ‘Revenue’. Visit
the former smugglers den The Laurel Inn with its bar carved from
solid rock and explore the cobbled side streets, if you don’t get
lost! Now where is that casket of Brandy?
Low tide exposes 550
meters of sea floor, great for fossil hunting and exploring pools.
There are 3 miles of beach at low tide, enough to walk to nearby
Ravenscar. Be careful, a swift turn of the tide can cut beachcombers
and walkers off in an instant.
The whole place has a different demeanour when
it’s foggy or storms, high winds and seas pound the cliff sides. The
sea can force its way up the main village street. Now you can
understand how parts of Robin Hoods Bay have disappeared in the past
with its precarious position on the cliffs.
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