Whitby Weekending :: Part 3

Hello Lovelies,
after a comfortable night's sleep Mum and I were delighted to wake up to sunshine on the Saturday morning of our seaside weekend.

After breakfast we got in mum's little red car and drove a couple of miles up the coast from Whitby....to Sandsend. When we arrived  the tide was out and the beach was huge..........

There was parking right by the beach and I left mum sketching while I went off to explore a little..........

Behind the beach there was a sheltered little valley full of cute cottages....and I'm a sucker for those............

Oooh, so sweet......

Who could resist pretty places like this...they even had charming names like Barnacle cottage and Crab Cottage.......

And their riverside setting was enchanting......

A lot of them were obviously holiday lets. You can take a peek inside this one HERE

On such a beautiful morning the valley was magical........

There was an older couple outside the last cottage in this row. As I passed I gushed about what a perfect morning it was.

I had to smile at the rather restrained reply in a broad Yorkshire accent I got from the man...." aye, s'all reet" ( that's "yes, it's all right" in case you were puzzled )

They really did seem it be living in the dream location to me, but I suppose to them it's just normality.

When I got back to the beach mum was paying for a couple of hours in the car park as she wanted to stay and paint a while.

I decided to walk along the coastal path here. It left right from the corner of the car park....just a few steps to climb..........

But I do love an elevated view and revelled in the wonderful light and the coastal colours.......

Here the path was wide and very well surfaced.........

with benches to enjoy the simply stunning view back towards Whitby............

I tramped happily along feeling, not for the first time this weekend,  so so lucky.........

Here the path turned it's back on the sea and I did wonder if I had to walk into the tunnel...yikes...

But thankfully not....just up a path beside it.......

And boy was it an up!.........

I was very glad of the hand rail as I carefully climbed the stone steps......

Gosh it was a steep climb...with several sets of wooden stairs too.........

I was very happy to emerge...gasping  and sweaty...at the top.........

And the view more than rewarded the effort..........

To say it was October there were quite a few wild flowers to spot too.
Lots of pretty white Yarrow............

and some fluffy pink Knapweed.............

This stretch of coast is part of the Cleveland way and there was great sign-age in case you were lost....but basically there's a big clue to direction on this stretch.

 Keep the sea on your right and straight on till morning :0).........

How I loved being up here...gazing down on the flat calm sea..........

The windswept shape of this bush gave away what the weather is more usually like around here.....

This little, home-make looking, sign made me smile. The Cleveland way is 110 mile's long and takes in both moorland and coast. I wonder if I will walk the whole length of it one day....that's certainly something to add to my walking wish list :0).........

Mum, who's never been a walker, it has to be said, recommended walking north so I wasn't looking into the sun the whole time. What great advice, thanks mum.

Here I was getting really hot...walking in my t.shirt and feeling very tempted to take off my tights. Who would have thought it!

As I rounded the next headland you could clearly see how the coastal erosion affects this area...and in the distance I spotted my destination....those little white houses tumbling down the hillside.........

But I still had an hour or so to walk...and what a walk. I loved the bright red rose hips everywhere, they looked amazing with a blue sea background..........

Here I was approaching the small farming community of Kettleness, where the farmer was out ploughing the fertile soil and the washing was blowing gently on the line.........

I loved the ever changing foreground this gradual approach to my destination provided..........

and the assortment of buildings along the way....both for the holidaymaker.......

and the seaside Farmer........

Here I checked my map. It wasn't necessary but I do love seeing how far I have come.
 Look I started in the bottom right hand corner, at Sandsend....I've wiggled along the path with the green diamonds, and now I was at the Kettleness bump, approaching Runswick bay...the name of the bay and the village......

I did pass quiet a few people heading into the sun and down towards Sandsend or a bit further, to Whitby.
 They were all friendly and It's nice to say a cheery hello when you are walking alone. Not that I felt lonely at all.......

Looking back towards Kettleness..........

And forwards towards Runswick Bay...........

It was the thing I think I liked most about this walk....the sense of anticipation.
Seeing your destination slowly, very gradually getting closer and closer. Looking so beautiful and inviting.
Driving here you would certainly get there quicker. But you would just be in traffic and maybe get a fleeting glimpse, this way was so much better. It was very special.

Ok, maybe getting a bit impatient now...lets zoom in a bit.....ooooh lovely.........

Here I lost sight of the village for a while as I carefully descended from the cliff top..........

But it soon reappeared........

The final part of the walk down was rather hairy...slippery stones into a stream.........

not a time to rush.........

and then I was down..........

very happy to have reached the beach...look boots, this is sand...........

and this is salty seawater.....yipee.......

I was tempted to have a paddle, to cool my hot sweaty feet. But I needed to try and find mum. We had arranged to meet here...there was no mobile signal.....ummm........

I was just wondering what I should do next when I saw her waving....she had just arrived too. Perfect timing...........well good luck anyway :0)..........

And it was lunchtime....I was very glad to sit in the cafe here and enjoy a sandwich and a chat with mum...........

 We both couldn't believe how well the day had turned out so far.

After lunch mum did some more sketching and I took a wander around the village....but I think I better save those pictures for another post, this one is very long already!

I hope you will pop back soon for part 4 lovelies
Jacquie x