Category: East Riding of Yorkshire

Sewerby, Bridlington to (not quite) Flamborough Head – November 2023

This was fantastic walk from Sewerby around the coast and heading to Flamborough Head by the England Coastal Path. I was lucky with the weather but the going was hard work as you head north and the trail turns to heavy, wet mud. The path is mainly turf, or quagmire, dependent on the local drainage.

A spell of dry weather and no more rain from storms like Storm Ciarán (around the time of the walk) would help!

I parked next to the Methodist Church in Sewerby. Foolishly, the council close the public car park in the winter and it isn’t accessible until March next year. Expect to be sniffed at by lots of well-behaved dogs but they, and their owners soon fall behind as you head north.

As seems to be typical walking off the North Sea, thye day started grim and obvercast. It still looks beautiful in my eyes, but it was pleasant to see blue skies gradually appear, miraculously as forecast…

The approach to Danes Dyke Beach:

It’s an beach full of chalk cliffs and the sea has rounded the chalk stones into many different sized ‘egg’ shapes.

Then it’s up and steps (yet again…) but the day was distinctly improving with blue skies and white clouds slowly appearing:

And just about to spot South Landing Beach in the distance:

It’s another beautiful spot with large limestone rocks rounded by the sea.

Ascending again:

At this point it has become a beautiful day with big blue skies and clouds (my favourite)…

Unfortunately the path starts to turn into mud at this stage and walking is hard work!

I battled on, enjoying scenery but not the footing:

This is where I stopped and turned back. The ground was seriously muddy and claggy which saps energy. Ahead was a sharp incline that I would have had to slither down on my backside with little chance of getting back up it!

The last picture picture before turning back:

I walked to Flamborough village and caught the bus back to Sewerby. Timetable here.

It’s a beautiful place but the path is walkable dependent on the weather. November 2023 had a shocking amnount of rain and named storms, so it’s no surprise the ground was in such a state. It woulkd be nice to go back in drier conditions.

And lastly, some videos of the walk:

The Rest of Spurn Head, East Riding – August 2021

I really enjoyed going to Spurn Point a couple of weeks ago. The post and pictures are here.

I didn’t get to walk much of it because of problems with my foot and I was unprepared for the walk! The herculean task awaited and I couldn’t resist the challenge. Seven hours and 8.5 miles later I got back to the car with sunburn, a sore back, knees and foot but happier than I’ve been in ages.

It’s a peculiar place. The further south you walk, the more lonely it feels. The washed away road lies in huge rafts of concrete scattered around like toys for giants. The remnants of Spurn Head’s history are also scattered about: the ruins of fortresses and the worn remains of anti-Tank blocks from the Second World War litter the beaches at low tide.

There’s eroded brickwork and mysterious concrete shapes everywhere.

Nearly everything made by human hand is in ruin leading to more impression of desolation, the exception being the RNLI station and housing for their staff. It leads to some reflection on the futility of battling the sea and how we tend to think we have mastery of nature.

On a more positive note, nature bursts forth everywhere and it is overwhelming Spurn Head’s history, good and bad.

Happily the walk back north on the beach on the eastern side was much more wild and empty. As you head north, though, there’s more remnants of man’s broken constructions.

That’s enough deep thought for now… thankfully!

There’s far too many pictures as the sky was beautiful and the coastal features were incredibly photogenic.

I’ve split the pictures:

Birds:

Flowers:

Sea, sky and ruin:

Check the high tides as Spurn Head can be cut off at it’s narrowest point, a mere 50 metres wide. Do also look at the signs at the car park about safety if there is a high tide.

Go to the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust website for more information about the area and better photos…

I recommend the fry up in the cafe at the Spurn National Nature Reserve.

These pictures and videos are @Aidan Parr 2021, so please ask permission if you want to use them. I’ll probably say ‘yes’!

Filey Bay – July 2021

I had an enjoyable walk along Filey Bay at the end of July 2021. The town itself isn’t too exciting for me. It’s a perfectly acceptable Victorian seaside resort and gets very popular from late morning onwards. My interest was Filey Bay itself.

I’d originally intended to park on the north side of Filey and walk along the promenade and then on the beach heading south. Unfortunately none of the parking meters were working (neither cash nor card), so after fifteen exasperating minutes I had to move. I eventually ended up parking south of Filey at West Avenue Car Park. Be warned that credit and debit cards didn’t work there either!

Happily it was only a short walk to the beach. Beware of high tides as you head south. It’s perfectly ok to walk about three miles to Hunmanby Gap but then the high tides don’t allow much beach walking. Check high tides here.

There is a car park at Hunmanby Gap but it’s unclear what times it opens if you want an early start. There’s nowhere else to park and you’ll see lots of signs from locals about not blocking driveways. There’s a cafe too.

It was a wild and windy day with some rain but nothing to spoil the morning. The pictures make it all look very grey and forbidding but there were sunny spells ever so often!

Like much of this part of the Yorkshire coast, there’s a lot of coastal erosion and you can see the remains of pillboxes from the Second World War which have fallen from the cliff tops onto the beach. Some still intact!

It gets busy around 11am. A tiny number of visitors are loud and undesirable but the majority of people are perfectly ok.

Click on the pictures to see the area more clearly.

These pictures and videos are @Aidan Parr 2021, so please ask permission if you want to use them. I’ll probably say ‘yes’!

Spurn Head, East Riding – August 2021

A fabulous walk yesterday on Spurn Point which is a longshore spit. The Humber estuary is to it’s west and the North Sea to the east. It’s windy, with fierce tides, beautiful wide open skies and it’s a bit ‘rough’, not at all suited to those who like the gentle sands of leisure beaches. There was hardly anyone there (a bonus!) with around twelve people, including me, at 11am.

I was fascinated by the flotsam and jetsam on the beach, notably several brick walls, rounded by the sea and cast up on the beach. The whole area is very dynamic and constantly changing, as it has done for centuries.

https://assets1.bigthink.com/system/tinymce_assets/5131/original/Lost_Towns_of_East_Yorkshire_.jpg?1490649405

There’s a nature reserve, a lighthouse and views around the promontory. The road was washed away in a storm in 2013 so you’ll have to walk on the beach instead. The sea is not meant for swimming or paddling in (I did try) because of strong currents and the very soft sand. It’s relatively easy to lose your footing. I lost my hiking stick which is now floating somewhere in the North Sea…

Check the high tides as Spurn Head can be cut off at it’s narrowest point, a mere 50 metres wide. Do also look at the signs at the car park about safety if there is a high tide.

Go to the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust website for more information about the area and better photos…

I recommend the fry up in the cafe at the Spurn National Nature Reserve.

Click on the picture to see it more clearly.

These pictures and videos are @Aidan Parr 2021, so please ask permission if you want to use them. I’ll probably say ‘yes’!