Robin Hoods Bay

A few miles south of Whitby lies the picturesque smugglers village of Robin Hoods Bay. The weather behaved and it was perfect for a visit.

Its very steep going down into the village (and steeper coming back up!).

I would have loved to have been in this Inn in 1680!!

There are plenty of watering holes here - this is hubby's favourite - Theakstons with a sea view!

The tide was out further than I have ever seen it, and the beach was busy with families.

There are lots of "wave cut platforms" on the beach - my son is a bit of a geography nerd and taught me how the cliffs would have been further out to sea, and these platforms would have been the base of the cliffs.

The coast line here is very erosive - one of the reasons we came was to have a good look. Can you guess what he's doing?

The cliffs remind me very much of the ones at Houlgate in France. They are made of boulder clay. Whilst they look amazing, they also look very very scary.

Did you guess what he was doing? This area is famous for fossils that can be found by splitting the rocks that the boulder clay reveals. Often, they are just lying on the beach like this one was.

Its a really exciting way to entertain a 15 year old (and two fifty something year olds too!).

We had a perfect day at the seaside.

Whitby

You may be forgiven in thinking that the sky is always blue in Yorkshire, but you see, when the weather man says its going to be fine, and I can get out, I get out. So travel with me over the North York Moors to Whitby.

Is it just me or do the moors get more spectacular every year?

We set off early and arrived in Whitby, on the Yorkshire coast at 10 am. It was a really really cold start, but as the sun warmed everything up, it became almost hot! Captain James Cook famously lived in Whitby.

For those who have never been, this is a real whale bone, just outside the Royal Hotel, used as "The Royal" hospital in the TV series (I didn't watch it much myself, but my god son is an actor and appeared in 3 episodes that I was duty bound to watch).

There is a fabulous beach which stretches all the way from Whitby to Sandsend (another stunning little village on the coast)

We had a stroll along the pier to one of the lighthouses. It was really busy. Either everyone has come to Yorkshire for a holiday, or we are all Staycationing.

The view from the Victorian side of town - over to the old village.

The Abbey in the town was the inspiration for "Dracula"

Of course, Fish and Chips are famous here - Rick Steins favourite chippy always has long queues.

The town is divided in two by the river Esk, the older half - the fishing village - is really quaint.

Because of the Dracula connection, Goths flock to Whitby. The "Goth weekends" are an amazing spectacular. We once happened upon one and I couldn't believe the stunning costumes and makeup.
Of course the town does Halloween really well because of this and if you get chance next weekend, they are putting on the most brilliant of all Goth Weekends. It will be a sight to see.

I always have to go and peer in, and smell the aroma at Fortunes Smoke house. He was smoking kippers, ham and salmon.

The view over to the Victorian side of town from the fishing village.

After fish and chips, we had a quick walk on the beach, and then drove on to Robin Hoods Bay.

I'll show you tomorrow what we did there.

Bretton Hall Estate walk

The park land at Bretton Hall, where the YSP is situated is stunning and very old.

We decided to walk up to the Longside Gallery - about a mile up a very steep and muddy hill (much to the young mans utter annoyance - he dislikes "uphills").

The Lakes remain from when this was a stately home.

Even the old gates are magnificent.

Stopping half way up the hill - to admire the view! You can see Bretton Hall, and the YSP Galleries behind. Until recent years, the hall was used by the University of Leeds, I believe that they are talking about it becoming a hotel.

Once inside the Longside Gallery, you can see that they bring the outside in as a backdrop to the pieces.

Continuing the round walk, we discovered the "Basket" - a strange folly like sculpture that the young man was forced to admit was "cool".

Perhaps all teenagers should be caged!!!

The woodland walks are really pretty - and you end up quite high up.

We discovered an old well - it looked like something from "Indianna Jones"!

So far, I am enjoying our Staycation.

Culture Club

I know that many people think of South Yorkshire as a cultural wasteland, but I love to show you that this is far from the case. One of the best art galleries in the country (in my opinion) is the Yorkshire Sculpture Park. It currently has a brilliant and as they say in arty circles, an "important" exhibition by David Nash. This is really pulling in the crowds - so much so that a trip to the amazing cafe is out of the question, unless you love massive queues.



This being Yorkshire, we do things a bit differently. The gallery does have a couple of typical big white spaces, but the majority of the exhibits are in the open air. And this being Yorkshire, the open air is a bit spectacular too.




The tale of Nash's Wooden Bolder was told in the Bothy. A fascinating story.

Whilst the sculptures are truly wonderful, the raw materials are pretty stunning too.

The Charcoal sculptures look stunning against the backdrop.

For once, this is an exhibition that you are encouraged to touch and feel.

Whilst wandering around, you happen up many Barbara Hepworth's,

The odd Andy Goldsworthy,

And lots of Henry Moore's, all standing exactly where the Sculptor would want them to be.

So if your idea of a good romp around a gallery involves pulling your wellies on first, then this is the place for you.

I'll show you our walk around the parkland and more of the stunning art work tomorrow.