Skinningrove ~ Medium Walk

 

Distance Covered: 6.5 miles Time to Complete Walk 3.5 hours

Suitable for dog walking: No

Skinningrove is a little coastal village a short drive from Saltburn, but less busy. This walk starts with an immediate climb up on the Cleveland Way for amazing views and spectacular cliff edge views. Not for those with vertigo! The amazing views continue to Boulby and then the return is on a quiet road. Park at the intriguely named Way of St Hild car park which is free of charge.

General Safety Tips: Take a walking stick for the cliff side walk on the Cleveland Way. Be mindful of traffic on the road back to Skinningrove.

The Skinningrove Walk

Getting There

From Middlesbrough head towards Saltburn and then down Saltburn bank. Continue passing The Ship Inn and follow the road into Brotton. Turn left into Brotton and follow this road to Loftus Bank. Skinningrove is a sharp left turn half way up Loftus Bank. Parking is free of charge at the Way Of St Hild carpark next to the beach and harbour.

Sat Nav- post code is TS13 4BJ

Maps of the Skinningrove Walk

The Walk

From the car park head towards the row of terrraced houses and follow the path to the left.

Head towards the bridge and turn left signed as the Cleveland Way walking over the bridge.

Follow the road as it curves up and head onto the Cleveland Way at the foot of a climb.

Climb to the top with great views at the summit.

Head along the Cleveland Way with amazing views of the cliffs and coastline.

There are ample photo opportunities along the way

When you come to a right turn head right following the Cleveland Way.

Head up the steps and follow the track to the left which remains the Cleveland Way

When you come to a farmhouse with an information plaque head to the top corner right through a gate to continue on the Cleveland Way

Continue along the Cleveland Way

Soon you arrive at the Moss Seat which is a great spot for a pitstop and to take in the spectacular views

Continue on the Cleveland which crosses over a footbridge

Head through a gate and take in the amazing views of the coastline

At a fork in the path head along the right hand fork

The path heads downwards and at a gate which is before some houses before the village of Boulby.

Straight after the houses, turn right and head up a lane

At the top turn right and head along the road. Keep your ears and eyes peeled for traffic.

The road is steep at firs up Boulby bank, however after it is quite level and passes houses

When you arrive at a fork in the road keep to the right.

The road continues to a junction, turn right and then left onto the road.

Head down this road back into Skinningrove.

Retrace your steps back to the car park

Skinningrove

Skinningrove is a village in the civil parish of Loftus, in the Redcar and Cleveland district, in the ceremonial county of North Yorkshire, England. Its name is of Old Norse etymology and is thought to mean skinners' grove or pit.

The village had an agricultural and fishing economy, until the opening of local ironstone workings, in 1848, initiated an industrialisation boom. A railway was built by 1865, and iron smelting began in 1874. A jetty on the coast, built in 1880, allowed seagoing vessels to carry heavy cargoes from the area. Mining continued until 1958, and primary iron production until the 1970s.

Skinningrove was formerly a township in the parish of Brotton. In 1866, it became a separate civil parish

The Land of Iron (formerly the Cleveland Ironstone Mining Museum and the Tom Leonard Mining Museum) displays the village's mining heritage. It provides an underground experience and an insight into how 6.2 million tons of ironstone was extracted from Skinningrove mines.

The village has a large natural sandy beach used for recreational fishing and a beck, which occasionally floods, notably in 2000.

The Methodist chapel closed in 2024, due to lack of numbers. It has been converted into two houses. The pipe organ from the chapel, which dates from 1910, was sold to a local museum.

The Cleveland Way National Trail passes through the village.

From 1982 to 2019, Skinningrove hosted a bonfire and fireworks display, which attracted hundreds of people from around North Yorkshire. Each year, the bonfire was based on a different theme. The bonfire was discontinued from 2023, due to safety concerns and local infrastructure being unable to cope with the large crowds.

The Cleveland Way runs through the village.

Photographer Chris Killip created an unpublished photo series about the town's residents in the early 1980s, about which the American filmmaker Michael Almereyda produced a short film. The film won Best Non-Fiction Short at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival.