It's that time of year again when just Mum and I go solo and get a weeks peace and quiet. This year we were also joined by my Mum's best mate, who made the trip more girly fun.
We fancied a bit of the North Yorkshire Moors and found a lovely Air BnB in the village of Cloughton, which is nestled between Scarborough and Whitby on the coast. The luxury cottage, with hot tab had everything you needed and the owners went above and beyond to make you feel comfortable and well-stocked. I couldn't recommend this stay enough. The hot tub was most welcome after walking to soothe aching muscles.
On our first full day we descended unto Whitby. I had been wanting to go here a long time, not only famed for scampi, the historic old town has wonderful shopping and the seafront has a plethora of fish and chip establishments and the usual seaside town fun. There are walks surrounding both directions and, the famous 199 steps to the Gothic cathedral ruins that was said to inspire Bram Stokers Dracula.
The ruins of Whitby Abbey are worth a visit as they are imposing over the landscape of Whitby and can be seen when driving around the coastal roads for miles. We visited here after our lunch which was much sought after upon finishing walk around Whitby's coastline. We circled the lighthouse and hornblowers cottage in a route that led us back to the town. Our lunch at The Fishermans Wife was fantastic, of course we had fish and chips at but the views overlooking the sea were wonderful and all fried in the hallowed beef dripping (apologies to my vegan friends!)
The next day, well rested and muscles soaked, we decided to visit Goathland in the heart of the North York Moors for a walk then a visit to the village famed for its depiction in the much loved UK television series Heartbeat.
We started with our walk first that took us down the disused Whitby to Pickering railway line, first built by George Stephenson in 1836. The walk then follows the river - Murk Esk - towards the Mallyan Spout Waterfall, which was a lovely spot to eat our picnic. Shortly after we descended to the top of the moors to see the wonderful views across the valley. We then needed to circle back to Goathland, on the main road we spotted a cafe and couldn't resist getting a cream tea at the Mallyan Spout Hotel to set us up for the afternoon.
Back in Goathland we did the touristy thang of visiting all the sites that were nostalgic to the TV series Heartbeat before finishing in the pub that featured in the series for a well earned pint. Before we got back to the van to drive home we stopped at Goathland Railway Station which is still in use for steam train rides through the Moors. It was also famed for being the railway station used in Harry Potter.
Our last full day in the North York Moors was spent driving to Fountains Abbey and Studley Water Gardens in Rippon. This is such a beautiful and peaceful place to spend the day, you can see why it has become a UNESCO World Heritage site. We spent the day ambling around the beauty of the site and being lulled into relaxation with the sound of the water features, not really needing to speak but soak in some glorious peace that we all crave from time to time. Perfect end to a perfect relaxing mini break.
Both walks from this blog were taken from my trusty Ordnance Survey Outstanding Circular Walks book.
