Yorkshire Coast

The National Trust cares for miles of the Yorkshire Coast between Saltburn and Filey, a run of cliffs, wildflower meadows, sandy bays and rocky shores linked by the Cleveland Way. Much of it was shaped by alum, the dye fixative made here after Thomas Challoner set up Britain's first alum works at Guisborough; the industry took 200 tonnes of human urine a year at its peak, and the last works closed in 1871. The Peak Alum Works at Ravenscar tell the story, and south of the village stand the four brick buildings of a 1941 radar station, now a Scheduled Monument. Two Trust walks show the range: a moderate 4.5 miles from Saltburn along Huntcliff to the Guibal fanhouse and Warsett Hill, and an easy 2.3 miles from Ravenscar Visitor Centre. Dogs are welcome under close control, on a short lead near livestock and cliff edges. Cliff falls have closed access to the beach at Ravenscar, and the Trust's cafes at Ravenscar and the Old Coastguard Station in Robin Hood's Bay have permanently closed. Roadside parking at Ravenscar is free.