Morning broke very sunny, cold and with a heavy dew and no opportunity to dry the saturated tents again.
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| I'm sure it's here somewhere? |
We had a quick shower then devoted about 20 mins to foot preparation. Vaseline and blister plasters were applied to all the hot spots, then the luxury of clean socks. Monty's feet were holding up very well, when walking he would pick his way along the grass rather than walk on the stony tracks, Dean would rub each of his pads with vaseline and aloe-vera every night, who says its a dog's life! I didn't dare ask if this service was available to other members of the group!
Middle Wood Farm was a great camp-site, ideally located and with fantastic facilities.
We quickly packed because we planned to have breakfast from 'The Great Griddler Takeaway' a van located on the camp-site catering for campers.
The Breakfast Buttie made a great change from our usual porridge. We left camp and walked into the village and had a quick look at the shops.
but not everybody was welcome, even in an quaint, idyllic spot like this shoplifting was rife!
It looked like the fish shop was once a butchers, check the tiles.
The weather was perfect, clear blue skies and sunshine.My old guide book by Bill Cowley says "when the tide is out by far the best thing is to walk along the beach, the scar and round the bay" however we took the cliff path so as not to miss out on the views.
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| The Griddler Menu |
The Breakfast Buttie made a great change from our usual porridge. We left camp and walked into the village and had a quick look at the shops.
but not everybody was welcome, even in an quaint, idyllic spot like this shoplifting was rife!
 |
| Warning Sign For Shoplifters |
It looked like the fish shop was once a butchers, check the tiles.
The weather was perfect, clear blue skies and sunshine.My old guide book by Bill Cowley says "when the tide is out by far the best thing is to walk along the beach, the scar and round the bay" however we took the cliff path so as not to miss out on the views.
either way you arrive at Boggle Hole and it's YHA.
In local folklore Boggles, Goblins or Brownies were believed to be little people that inhabited many of the caves running along the coast. In reality most of the natural caves found along this coastline were used by smugglers to stash their contraband.
Climbing back up onto the cliffs we were rewarded with more splendid views of Robin Hoods Bay.
Its 3 miles from Ness Point to Old Peak or North Cheek to South Cheek the two headlands that form Robin Hoods Bay
and on the tops I managed to find somewhere to rest my camera and get a group shot.
I remembered camping on the moors with my dad when we did the CW and a local farmer warning us about Adders.
Adders are the only venomous snake native to Britain. They have the most highly developed venom injecting mechanism of all snakes, but they are not aggressive animals. Adders will only use their venom as a last means of defence, usually if caught or trodden on.
No one has died from an Adder bite in Britain for over 20 years. With proper treatment, the worst effects are nausea and drowsiness, followed by severe swelling and bruising in the area of the bite.
So my advice is treat adders with respect and leave them alone.
The last view of Robin Hoods Bay is on the climb up to the village of Ravenscar.
Ravenscar is 600ft up on the headland and at the end of the Lyke Wake Walk. Once passed the village you get your first views of Scarborough and Filey Brigg, the end of the CW. Flamborough Headland can also be seen in the far distance.
From the high cliffs we descended right back down to sea level to Hayburn Wyke, where a stream passing under a small wooden bridge makes some deep rock pools before going over a waterfall and down onto the shore. We crossed the small wooden bridge and could not miss the opportunity to bathe our feet in such an idyllic spot.
Cool clear water
as approved by Monty
and everybody else
Spirit and feet revitalised we carried on toward Scarborough, the plan for today was to camp wild somewhere just beyond Scarborough as this would put us, the following morning, within easy striking distance of Filey and I could catch my train.
It was another tough steep climb from Hayburn Wyke back up onto the cliffs, one characteristic that sticks out about the CW whether on the moors or the coast path is that there is always a steep descent followed immediately by a steep ascent.
but the views certainly make the climbs worthwhile you appreciate vistas more when you have had to work for them.
With Scarborough Castle looking imminent and with our plan to pick-up some supplies (i.e. beer & food) for our overnight camp in Scarborough, we moved on.
I found a short cut back to Helmsley
actually it's the so called 'missing-link' path or The Tabular Hills Walk (48 miles long) which when added on to the CW allows you to make a circular walk out of it instead of a point to point but this would not include Scarborough & Filey unless you backtracked?
We dropped down off a small headland Scalby Ness into Scarborough and right at the start of the promenade was a pub. The "call of the beer" was too much for Gary & Dean and they wanted a couple of pints before carrying on, but as it was now nearly 5:00pm I didn't want to miss the chance of getting some photos or supplies, so I suggested that while they are having their pint I would wander along the prom and take some photos and meet them later.
With its 3,000 year history, stunning location on a headland looking out over The North Sea and with panoramic views over the dramatic Yorkshire coastline, Scarborough Castle started life as an Iron Age Fort, was then occupied by the Romans, became a Viking settlement and reached its heyday under Henry II.
It was now getting chilly and the wind was blowing cold. Gary, Dean & Monty caught up and of we set into town for our supplies. We nipped into a small co-op to get a few beers & some water for our overnight wild camp, however Dean emerged with bags full of shopping just like like he was about to set off on another expedition. I looked on in disbelief I couldn't think how he was going to carry it all, he had bought some food 'to put him on', he wolfed down a steak pie, two scotch eggs and something else that went down to quick for me to recognise.
Climbing back up onto the cliffs we were rewarded with more splendid views of Robin Hoods Bay.
 |
| North Cheek |
Its 3 miles from Ness Point to Old Peak or North Cheek to South Cheek the two headlands that form Robin Hoods Bay
 |
| South Cheek and the cliffs of Ravenscar |
and on the tops I managed to find somewhere to rest my camera and get a group shot.
 |
| Beware the Boggles, Goblins & Brownies to be found on the coast path. |
I remembered camping on the moors with my dad when we did the CW and a local farmer warning us about Adders.
Adders are the only venomous snake native to Britain. They have the most highly developed venom injecting mechanism of all snakes, but they are not aggressive animals. Adders will only use their venom as a last means of defence, usually if caught or trodden on.
No one has died from an Adder bite in Britain for over 20 years. With proper treatment, the worst effects are nausea and drowsiness, followed by severe swelling and bruising in the area of the bite.
So my advice is treat adders with respect and leave them alone.
The last view of Robin Hoods Bay is on the climb up to the village of Ravenscar.
Ravenscar is 600ft up on the headland and at the end of the Lyke Wake Walk. Once passed the village you get your first views of Scarborough and Filey Brigg, the end of the CW. Flamborough Headland can also be seen in the far distance.
From the high cliffs we descended right back down to sea level to Hayburn Wyke, where a stream passing under a small wooden bridge makes some deep rock pools before going over a waterfall and down onto the shore. We crossed the small wooden bridge and could not miss the opportunity to bathe our feet in such an idyllic spot.
Cool clear water
as approved by Monty
and everybody else
Another oasis on the Cleveland Way?
Spirit and feet revitalised we carried on toward Scarborough, the plan for today was to camp wild somewhere just beyond Scarborough as this would put us, the following morning, within easy striking distance of Filey and I could catch my train.
It was another tough steep climb from Hayburn Wyke back up onto the cliffs, one characteristic that sticks out about the CW whether on the moors or the coast path is that there is always a steep descent followed immediately by a steep ascent.
 |
| Looking back 'down' at Hayburn Wake |
but the views certainly make the climbs worthwhile you appreciate vistas more when you have had to work for them.
With Scarborough Castle looking imminent and with our plan to pick-up some supplies (i.e. beer & food) for our overnight camp in Scarborough, we moved on.
I found a short cut back to Helmsley
actually it's the so called 'missing-link' path or The Tabular Hills Walk (48 miles long) which when added on to the CW allows you to make a circular walk out of it instead of a point to point but this would not include Scarborough & Filey unless you backtracked?
We dropped down off a small headland Scalby Ness into Scarborough and right at the start of the promenade was a pub. The "call of the beer" was too much for Gary & Dean and they wanted a couple of pints before carrying on, but as it was now nearly 5:00pm I didn't want to miss the chance of getting some photos or supplies, so I suggested that while they are having their pint I would wander along the prom and take some photos and meet them later.
 |
| Scarborough and it's Castles! |
With its 3,000 year history, stunning location on a headland looking out over The North Sea and with panoramic views over the dramatic Yorkshire coastline, Scarborough Castle started life as an Iron Age Fort, was then occupied by the Romans, became a Viking settlement and reached its heyday under Henry II.
It was now getting chilly and the wind was blowing cold. Gary, Dean & Monty caught up and of we set into town for our supplies. We nipped into a small co-op to get a few beers & some water for our overnight wild camp, however Dean emerged with bags full of shopping just like like he was about to set off on another expedition. I looked on in disbelief I couldn't think how he was going to carry it all, he had bought some food 'to put him on', he wolfed down a steak pie, two scotch eggs and something else that went down to quick for me to recognise.
Next door but one to the shop we had just been in was a pub, part of famous chain that sells good beer & food, cheap.
On impulse we decided to forget the idea of cooking on the cliff tops, we'd have one of their famous Roast Sunday Dinners £6.50 (+ £1 to super-size it). This included Roast Beef, Yorkshire Puddings, Cabbage, Carrots, Peas and Roast Potatoes plus Mashed Potatoes plus a pint. I upgraded my pint to my favourite Old Peculier and we bought another pint while we waited for our food.
We got halfway through the meal when the manager came over objecting strongly to Monty being in the pub "Dogs are not allowed, you will have to leave" we tried to pacify him while gobbling down our dinner "we'll be gone in just a few minutes". He marched off like he was going for 'security', but he never returned.
We carried on eating as fast as we could and Dean got Monty's big plastic bowl out of his rucksack and put on it a slice of roast beef and some mashed potato, Gary joined in putting a slice of beef and a roast potato on, so I contributed a slice of beef and a Yorkshire Pud. Monty finished his dinner before us even though we were rushing to finish and get out. I must say it all tasted jolly good on a cold night in Scarborough.
The nice thing about the CW is that it is a walk of two halves, the moors then the coast but set against this is the stark contrast of Whitby and Scarborough, two busy bustling seaside resorts, not what you would expect to find on a 'National Trail'.
However the evening walk through the grand Victorian Hotels of Scarborough's South Bay was atmospheric. We crossed Valley Bridge Rd. and cut through to the esplanade high up on the cliffs. We passed ornamental and Italian Gardens and the view back to the harbour would have done credit to the Mediterranean.
However the evening walk through the grand Victorian Hotels of Scarborough's South Bay was atmospheric. We crossed Valley Bridge Rd. and cut through to the esplanade high up on the cliffs. We passed ornamental and Italian Gardens and the view back to the harbour would have done credit to the Mediterranean.
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| Scarborough Harbour (8:30pm) |
As we walked along, a guy who turned out to be a squadie, asked us if we were looking for somewhere to camp, he told us of a good spot but when we got there we all felt that we would feel a bit more comfortable further out of town.
So we carried on onto the cliff path and found a spot by the side of a golf course, it was a stunning location overlooking Cornelian Bay but it was cold, damp and windy. We put on extra clothing sat down on our rucksacks shared a beer and some stories, until it felt late enough to erect our tents. The tents were still wet through, they had been for days now, we sat up camp then boiled some noodles and shared our last beers before retiring.
It had been a good day, I hadn't felt comfortable wandering round Scarborough and going in to a pub when I didn't know where we were going to sleep that evening, I felt as though we ought to be finding a place to camp now rather than leaving it till later but a couple of pints of Theakstons Old Peculier eased my mind and in the end it all worked out very well. Sometimes it does you good just to be taken outside of your comfort zone.
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