Category: Saltburn
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Coastal Reverie: From Saltburn to Cattersty Sands
With the tide in my favour, I set off on an early morning walk from Saltburn along the coast. The conditions were almost too favourable, rendering the barnacle-encrusted scar an easy path. Before long, I found myself nearing Cattersty Sands. After passing Seal Goit, a name hinting at visits from marine mammals, I glanced back…
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Nature Reclaims Industry: Warsett Hill
A fishing smack chugging serenely towards his lobster pots off Huntcliff caught my attention. The morning is still and muggy, with overnight rain fizzling out and the sea as calm as a millpond. I have been working on the National Trust’s property at Warsett Hill, tidying up an old, decrepit post and rail fence. Acquired…
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Huntcliff: A Roman Lookout Lost to the Sea
It’s been a lovely day at the seaside, but I my eyes were drawn to Huntcliff Nab, the huge beetling cliff that towers over Saltburn. It’s made of soft shales and is slowly being worn away by the sea and wind. I imagined what the headland would have looked like almost two millenia ago, when…
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Cuckoos on the Move as Cyclists Battle Up Saltburn Bank
In the women’s race of the Cleveland Classic, competitors ascend the formidable Saltburn Bank at the first of the event’s four laps. Cycling here, my ears were tuned keenly for that distinctive call of the first cuckoo of the year. Today marks Cuckoo Day, also known as St. Tiburtius’ Day, traditionally the day when the…
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An hour off high tide at Saltburn
An hour or so off high tide at Saltburn, mind you, I’m talking about ‘Old‘ Saltburn here, not the newer ‘by-the-Sea‘ town that sprouted up when the Stockton and Darlington Railway Company arrived, and Henry Pease put up his Zetland Hotel, along with rows of fancy houses, shops, and detached villas all with their distinctive…
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Dipping Toes and Donning Macintoshes: A History of Sea-Side Bathing
Numerous folk were having a refreshing dip at Saltburn this morning, seizing the opportunity presented by the autumn sun’s warm rays and the surging waves. The surfers had donned their wet-suits, which bestowed upon them some protection against the chilly clutches of the North Sea. One fellow strolling back along the shore confessed that it…
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The Hobman of Upleatham
Upleatham Old Church, once referred to as “the smallest church in England”, a superlative that is usually disputed — but which has, as far as I know, never been refuted. However it is not this quaint little church which concerns me in this post but a small hill just over mile to the north east,…
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The colourful life of Lord Ernest Vane Tempest
In spite of occupying the prime spot overlooking Saltburn Sands, Britannia Terrace is architectually dominated by Henry Pease’s Zetland Hotel, described in 1867 as “one of the most magnificent and commodious Marine Edifices in the Kingdom,” commanding “a splendid Prospect of the Sea and the finest Mountain Scenery in England“. I love it when I…
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Cliff Ironstone Quarry
One of the lesser known ironstone mines in Cleveland. Well, actually it was a quarry for the first 8 years of its operation from 1857 to 1865. An account published in 1866 by ‘J.G.’ is interesting: Enchanting as everything appeared we had no time to linger, so we began our trip from the beach and…
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An attempt at recreating a vintage postcard of Saltburn-by-the Sea
This postcard is from the East Cleveland Image Archive website. The consensus is that it dates from the late 1960s. A miserable failure I think. I was working from memory and in hindsight believe I was too low down the bank. And not close enough to the edge but the nettles beat me. Some big…