Day 4 Scarborough to Sawdon

                  Into each life some rain must fall.
                                               Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

And so it did, all day long. The rain and wind had been forecast and for once the forecast was correct, 27mm fell in the Scarborough area on this day. 

I wasn't on this part of the walk so thanks to Jackie Wilkes, Jean Moxon and Stuart Blaylock for providing me with all the details. Rita was supposed to be leading but she and Frank were ill with food poisoning so Ray drew the short straw as he was the only other person who knew where the walk was going. So thanks to Ray for saving the day!

The walk set off from the Corner Cafe in North Bay Scarborough after the coach had negotiated Marine Drive, high tide with a ten foot swell. Very exciting by all accounts. The sea was extremely rough and crashing over the sea wall. The first part of the walk headed north  along the coastal path to Long Nab with the wind and rain blowing in our faces. Soon there was a left turn on the top of the cliffs signposted Helmsley 48 miles and this was the beginning of the Tabular Hills walk. 18 brave souls on the 'B' walk and 2 more on the 'A' walk. I'm not sure what that says about 'A' walkers and 'B' walkers! You can draw your own conclusions.

After turning inland the walking was a bit easier as the wind was behind but it NEVER stopped raining all day.An hour after starting we reached the village of Scalby. Full marks to Ray and Stuart for finding the Scalby Tennis and Bowling Club with its shelter that accommodated us for lunch in the dry. We should thank them too but there was no-one there!

After lunch the walk proceeded along the Sea Cut for a couple of miles, This is a drain that was built some two centuries ago by Sir George Cayley and it carries excess flood water from the River Derwent and channels it out to sea. A good job it was there as there was a flood alert in place for the River Derwent. The last part of the walk was in Wykeham Forest so a little more sheltered but still raining and windy. There were bluebells, primroses and wood sorrell to lift the spirits. It would have been a lovely walk in good weather.

It was forest tracks all the way to Sawdon where the pub was closed but there was no more welcome sight than the coach waiting with its engine running and heating on. An early finish for once and a quick journey home.

Day 3 Scarborough to Filey

Start of the walk taken by Sheila

After a week of glorious sunshine the weatherman promised us cloud and cool conditions today. Thankfully that must have been an April Fool's joke because the sun shone all day long and the conditions were ideal for walking. There were quite a number of surfers in Scarborough and also at Cayton Bay. Since wetsuits have become more affordable this sport has taken off in a big way all year round so if you are interested this link will give you details of Scarborough Surf School.

We made our way up the zigzag paths at the end of South Bay  looking down on the Spa which has a varied programme of events starting at Easter with Northern Soul weekend.

Soon we were up on the cliff top path with the sea on the left and with views of Scarborough behind us. I even caught sight of Derek taking his coat off so you can tell how warm it was!

It was a very pleasant walk not too much 'uppy downy' this time. It was interesting to see a group of bungalows perched very close to the edge of the cliff that keeps collapsing. I'm sure we all remember that occasion in 1993 when the Holbeck Hall hotel collapsed into the sea. There is still plenty of coastal erosion all along this coastline. Thankfully for us the weather has been particularly dry recently and the ground was rock hard.

The Cleveland Way ends on the cliff top above Filey Brigg and the Wolds Way starts at the same point so of course we had to have a group photo even though we haven't completed either walk yet!

We had plenty of time in Filey at the end of the walk so some of us went on the Brigg.

 It is worth the effort of getting there to experience the rough sea crashing against the rocks on one side and the calm of Filey Bay on the other. A popular place for intrepid sea anglers but you have to keep a close eye on the tide.
I have spent a lot of my youth in Filey as my parents had a house on the cliff top so it was good to re-visit the old familiar places and have a paddle of course though I was the only one who did. How can you walk on that beautiful beach and not have a paddle? I caught up with some of the group drinking tea on the Coble Landing. Not as many boats as I remember in the past but otherwise much the same.

A very large metal sculpture of a fisherman now stands on the seafront. Hmm was this similar to the one seen in Scarborough?  Yes it was and the same lady has paid for it to remain there as you can see from this link. Not quite the angel of the north but quite a landmark nevertheless.
After a quick tour of the seafront and the town so that I could check out a few old haunts, we made our way to the bus station to catch the coach home. Everyone had had a great day out and we must now say farewell to the coast as we start the Tabular Hills walk from just north of Scarborough to Helmsley.