Cleveland Way

OVERVIEW

The Cleveland Way was the second National Trail to open, and combines both a long section across the North Yorkshire Moors, with a section up the Yorkshire Coast.

As trails go, it is moderately challenging - and probably sits in the middle of the National Trails in terms of difficulty (never too hard, but not exactly easy).

It features a lot of pretty countryside, with only very short sections spent heading through more urban centres - with this mostly done at Saltburn, Whitby and Scarborough (which are fairly interesting places anyway).

At the southern end the trail passes Sutton Bank - with very impressive views out over the Vale of York - and then then heads north to join up with the Coast to Coast between Osmotherley and Swainby.

Throughout the trail the views are very good, with the coast line being up there with the best in the country, and you often spend your time walking along ridges with great views out across the country below.

Although the coastal section ends at Filey - there is a lot to be gained by continuing the walk on down to Bridlington (as that adds Flamborough Head, and the puffins and other birds at Bempton). The mileage that adds is not substantial, and that extra section could be completed in a single day.

PRACTICALITIES

Helmsley can be reached by bus (I used the 31X from York), but the frequency of services are very low.

From here Sutton Bank has surprisingly weak public transport (although there are odd services), and so I usually walk up from Thirsk (along this adds a fair amount of mileage).

Once round to the northern side of the North Yorkshire Moors, there is a bus that turns up at intervals at Osmotherley and Swainby - which can take you down to Northallerton, or on to any accommodation. You do have to check the times in advance and plan accordingly, but I have never had any issues using this bus (it is used for the school run so should be particularly reliable for the school start / end runs).

That same bus goes between the villages beneath the Cleveland Way - but once round to Great Broughton the trains provide access to the trail.

From Battersby train station it is about an hours walk to the car park at Clay Bank next to the Cleveland Way - and although this is along roads it is a very quiet route. This is an access point I have used extensively over the years.

Next the Cleveland Way passes very close to the train station at Kildale, and reasonably close to the station at Great Ayton (with a path down from Captain Cook Monument or a route up past the farm to Roseberry Topping).

After this the main town passed is Guisborough, and this town has reasonable bus services.

Then at Saltburn you have the next train access point, whilst buses also run along the coast between Middlesbrough and Whitby (linking up with Saltburn train station).

Those buses provide the next options for transport links until you reach Whitby - where you have the choice of the regular buses between Scarborough and Middlesbrough or the train links (note that the bus to Middlesbrough is faster and cheaper than the train, and more frequent).

That same bus stops at Robin Hood's Bay - and I have taken this bus from Scarborough to The Falcon bus stop - where there is a good track down towards Ravenscar (just to the west of the Falcon Inn and through the woods, before heading to the windmill and on to Ravenscar by road).

Once round to Scarborough you have train links to York, and additional train links can be found at the end of the trail at Filey.

Doing the trail in sections is easily done using the links described above (if using the more infrequent buses I would suggest using those at the start of a walk rather than at the end, but most links seem to be reliable).

Doing the walk in one go can be more challenging as the accommodation options are more limited, and so you will have to do the distances required by the available accommodation. The accommodation options do get much easier once you are on the coast, however, so you could simply stay off trail for the first part, then on trail along the coast (using public transport or a bit of extra walking to get off trail).

For accommodation the best options would be something along the lines of starting at Helmsley, then the Carpenters Arms (off the trail in Felixkirk), then Osmotherley, then Great Broughton, then Kildale Barn or Great Ayton. Then once at the coast you can stop wherever you like really - for instance Saltburn, Staithes / Port Mulgrave, Whitby, Robin Hood's Bay, Boggle Hole, Ravenscar, Scarborough and Filey.

USEFUL LINKS

Guidebook : The Cleveland Way

LDWA Page : Cleveland Way National Trail - LDWA Long Distance Paths
National Trails Website : Cleveland Way - National Trails

STAGES

Helmsley to Sutton Bank (★★★★☆) - North Yorkshire Moors

The easiest way to get to Helmsley is to get the 31X bus from York - although you should note that there are very limited public transport options at Sutton Bank (I finished the walk in Thirsk and then started the next section of the trail from Thirsk as well).

From Helmsley the path cuts across fields and through trees to Rievaulx Abbey (which can be visited off the route of the trail), and then on round to head through the village of Cold Kirby. From here it heads over to Sutton Bank where you get great views out from Roulston Scar.

This section included 10.0 miles of walking on the Cleveland Way - but 19.3 miles in total - with one and a half thousand feet of ascent.

Sutton Bank to Swainby (★★★★★) - North Yorkshire Moors

I walked this section from Thirsk, joining up with the Cleveland Way at Sutton Bank. From here the path heads out along the Hambledon Hills, with amazing views out across the Vale of York. 

After Sneck Yate the path heads into a wooded section, before returning to open moorland at Little Moor - with this open section continuing until the path drops down into Osmotherley.

The path heads through the village of Osmotherley - and then passes Mouth Grace Priory (down a hill) and Lady's Chapel (a short walk off the path), before heading through Arncliffe Wood to Scarth Wood Moor. Here you get great views out over the trail ahead, before the path heads back into woods at Scarth Nick - after which the path passes by Swainby.

This section includes 14.4 miles of walking on the Cleveland Way - but 23.5 miles in total - with one and a half thousand feet of ascent on the trail (or two and half thousand from Thirsk).

Swainby to Kildale (★★★★★) - North Yorkshire Moors

The Cleveland Way sits above Swainby and from here the path heads along the base of Limekiln Bank and then cuts across a field (usually with cows - friendly ones) to Huthwaite Green.

There is then a climb up to Live Moor and then on round to Carlton Bank, before dropping to Lord Stones, where a number of Bronze Age burial mounds can be found.

The path heads next up to Cringle Moor (past another Bronze Age burial mound) and then drops down, before heading up once again and back down, before again heading back up to the Wain Stones.

From here the path drops once again to cross over a road, before climbing back up to Urra Moor (passing a Bronze Age earth dyke) and along to the old railways at Bloworth Crossing. Here the path turns left and back on itself to head along Ingleby Moor, before dropping down into Kildale.

This section included 17.5 miles of walking (of which 16.6 miles were on the Cleveland Way). There was a total ascent of just under three thousand feet.

Kildale to Saltburn (★★★★☆) - North Yorkshire Moors

From Kildale train station it is a very short walk to meet up with the Cleveland Way, which heads up a farm drive, with a steep climb up into woods that lead round to Captain Cook's Monument - where there are great views out across the countryside.

From here the path drops down to a road and up onto Great Ayton Moor, where it winds round to pass Roseberry Topping. The Cleveland Way extends out to Roseberry Topping (and back), which can be busy, but which also offers views out towards Teesside and the North Sea.

From here the path cuts back across Great Ayton Moor to Highcliff Nab (which looks out over Guisborough) - and then continues through Guisborough Woods, before dropping down to cross the A171 near Slapewath.

There is a steep climb up from here, after which the path heads to (and through) Skelton, before reaching Saltburn via Saltburn Valley Country Park.

This section includes 15.6 miles of walking (14.7 miles on the Cleveland Way), with under two and half thousand feet of ascent.

Saltburn to Whitby (★★★★☆) - North Yorkshire Moors

From Saltburn the path heads up onto Hunt Cliff, where it squeezes between the cliffs and the railway, before heading round to a very pretty, and often deserted, beach at Skinningsgrove. 

From here it heads back up onto the cliffs on the far side, and on past Boulby to the pretty fishing village of Staithes. After passing through Staithes, the path climbs once again and heads past Port Mulgrave, before dropping into Runswick Bay.

At Runswick Bay there is a classical English seaside beach - and from here the path climbs back up the cliffs to reach Kettleness. From Kettleness the path continues along the cliffs, joining up with the old railway, before reaching Sandsend. From here you can walk along the beach most of the way into Whitby.

This walk totaled 20.3 miles (19.5 miles on the Cleveland Way) and totaled almost three thousand feet of ascent walking in reverse from Whitby to Saltburn.

Whitby to Scarborough (★★★★★) - North Yorkshire Moors

This walk is ideally done walking from Scarborough to Whitby - as then the best section (between Ravenscar and Robin Hood's Bay) can be done with the views in front of you as you walk. If you do go the other way it is not a disaster, you will just want to stop and look back every now and then.

From Whitby the route heads up past the Abbey along the cliffs (this section is eroding so is best done along the road past the Abbey for now). Having cleared the holiday park you look out over Saltwick Bay (here it helps to be walking from Whitby as you no longer need to look at the holiday park).

Next you head past the lighthouse (don't get too excited about it, it's a bit ugly), and on past Maw Wyke Hole, where you get a great view of the cliffs as they cut in. From here there is a straighter section of cliff line until the route starts to wiggle a bit more as you pass White Stone Hole (again improving the views out across the cliffs).

From here you pass through Robin Hood's Bay, then past Boggle Hole and then take on the prettiest part of this section of coast, walking up to Ravenscar (passing the former site of Peak Alum Works along the way). 

From Ravenscar the path heads on past Heyburn Wyke and on along the cliffs to eventually make it round to the edge of Scarborough. Here you walk past North Bay beach, round the castle and then arrive into the harbour - and the core of Scarborough.

This section totaled 22.8 miles (22.2 miles on the Cleveland Way itself) and walking from Scarborough to Whitby had a total ascent of just over three thousand feet.

Scarborough to Filey (★★★☆☆)

The Cleveland Way heads out of Scarborough on a low route past Scarborough Spa (the origin point for Scarborough as Britain's first seaside town, back in 1660), but I extended the walk to explore the park above as well (this is a much shorter stage).

From here the path heads out up above Wheatcroft Cliff and Frank Cliff, before cutting up to Osgodby, with this section around Osgodby having less coast visible.

From here the path heads down towards Clayton Bay, where the views return, and the path heads past Clayton Bay to Lebberston Cliff. From here it goes past a holiday park on a crumbling section of cliff to reach Filey Brigg, which is a wonderful end point to the Cleveland Way. From here you can follow the Yorkshire Wolds Way to Filey train station.

This section totaled 11.4 miles (of which 7.8 miles were on the Cleveland Way - with 2.0 miles being additional walking around the parks at Scarborough). Total ascent was in excess of one thousand feet.

Up Next - Bempton Cliffs, Tabular Hills Walk or Yorkshire Wolds?

If you are looking to extend the walk further, heading south will take you down to Bempton Cliffs where you might (at the right time of year) get to see some puffins - and you can continue on to Flamborough Head.

Both these sites are well worth the effort - and from there you can get the train back from either Bempton or Bridlington.

If by this point you are missing the North Yorkshire Moors, you can just as easily head back up to Scarborough and follow the Tabular Hills Walk back to Helmsley (and then possibly do it all again?).

If instead you fancy something completely different, the Yorkshire Wolds Way continues on from here and offers up a very different landscape.