Saltburn Valley Gardens ~ Easy Walk

Distance Covered: 2.5 miles Time to Complete Walk: 1.5 hours

Suitable for dog walking: Yes

A gentle walk around one of Yorkshires favourite seaside towns. Starting at the edge of the Valley Gardens, make your way through the woods and then down to the pier and back through the gardens following a minature railway. A nice leisurely walk rewarded with a nice dose of fresh sea air. 

Parking is on the kerbside near The Ridge and is free of charge.

Virus Awareness: The walk was completed in the middle of a lockdown and social awareness was heightened. Coffee shops and fish and chip shops were still serving and there were no social distancing issues along the route of the walk.

General Safety Tips:  Wear walking boots as the route can get muddy. Wrap up well  for the detour down Saltburn Pier.

The Saltburn Valley Gardens Walk

Getting There

From Middlesbrough follow the A174 to Saltburn. On entering the town square, look for a right turn onto Albion Terrace. Follow it ahead at a junction. Keep on Albion Terrace and look for a left turn onto Victoria Road. Follow this round until you come to The Ridge. Park on Victoria Road on the kerbside. 

    Map of the Saltburn Valley            Gardens Walk

The Walk

Head towards The Ridge and look for a left turn down a track which is Marske Mill Lane.

Turn left down Marske Mill Lane

Look for a sign to your left for the entrance to the Valley Gardens.

Entrance to the Valley Gardens

Joining the Cleveland Way, the path dips and turns along a pleasant woodland track.

Join the Cleveland Way

Follow the path through the woods

Keep ahead at a fork in the path, keeping to the right branch of the path.

Keep to the right branch of the path

At another branch in the path, this time head up the left path.

Take the left fork n the path

Look for some steps to your left which will take you up to Albion Terrace.

Climb the steps up to the road

Turn right and follow the pavement passing a war memorial on your right.

War Memorial

Keep on the path ahead passing some nice art and a bandstand on you right.

Bandstand

Near a bus stop look for some steps down on your right.

Look for steps down on your right

At the bottom of the steps turn left and head on the path to the back of the Spa Hotel.

Head to the left

The Spa Hotel

Head to some steps in the corner on your right.

Head to the corner of the hotel

Follow the steps down

Emerging onto Saltburn bank turn right and head down to the bottom.

Turn right and head down to the bottom 

For a detour to Saltburn Pier, cross the road carefully and walk through the car park to the pier for a nice bit of fresh sea air. Fish and Chips is also a temptation before the pier.

Cross the road into the car park

Saltburn Pier

Head back to the footpath and before the bridge turn right passing a cafe.

Turn right and pass the cafe

Follow the path keeping to the left at a fork in the path.

Keep to the left at the fork

Follow the path passing a playground and over a footbridge.

Cross over the footbridge

The path runs adjacent to a miniature railway and ends at the train station.

Follow the path beside the railway

At the station cross over another footbridge.

Go over the footbridge

Turn left and then right up some steps.

Climb the steps

Turn left and enter the gardens. There is also some tea rooms before the gardens which was closed due to the virus.

The formal gardens and tea rooms

Further on from the gardens is a nursery which can be accessed through a gate on the right.

Turn right through the gate into the nursery

From the nursery turn left and up some steps and the left again onto the woodland path you came from. Follow this path back to The Ridge and your car.

Head left from the nursery and up some steps

Head back on the woodland path

Saltburn Valley Gardens

The Valley Gardens cover about 10 hectares, and include a formal Italian Garden, a miniature railway, and woodland walks.

The Valley Gardens form part of the late Victorian seaside resort of Saltburn-by-the-Sea which was developed between 1861 and 1873 by the Quaker Henry Pease. The layout of the town, with the allocation of the site for the pleasure grounds, was designed by George Dickenson from 1861 to 1863. Following the first phase, several design proposals were considered for the remaining area. Joseph Newton's proposals were accepted and implemented between 1865 and 1867.

The c 10ha Valley Gardens lie on the eastern edge of Saltburn, on the west bank of a steep wooded glen (formerly called Camp Bank) along Skelton Beck, and they follow the long narrow landform of the glen. The eastern boundary of the site runs along White House Wood and Rigg Wood which cover the east bank of the glen. To the north, the site meets the Lower Promenade (formerly The Esplanade) which runs along the seafront, while the western boundary abuts two roads: Albion Terrace and Glenside. To the south, woodland merges into Rifts Wood, which is linked to the Valley Gardens by a series of footpaths.There are extensive views from various points within the site, the principal one being north towards the Lower Promenade and the sea. Formerly this included Saltburn Bridge (Ha¿Penny Bridge) which is shown on contemporary photographs. There are also important views east towards White House Wood and Saltburn Bank, and south to Thompson's Wood and Rushpool Hall. The latter, a C19 villa now converted to a hotel, is situated on top of a hill and forms an important eyecatcher.

Kirkham Priory ~ Medium Walk

Distance Covered: 4.5 miles Time to complete walk:  2.5 hours

Suitable for dog walking: Yes - check for livestock in fields though

Discover the remains of a monastery at Kirkham Priory. Nestled near the River Derwent, explore the Priory and discover why Winston Churchill paid it a visit. Then make your way through woods onto open pastures passing a railway. Make your way back alongside the River Derwent. A great walk with bags to offer. Book your tickets to the Priory ahead which is £5.00. Parking is outside the Priory and free to visitors. The Priory has a gift shop and toilets.

Virus Awareness: Wear a mask on entering the Priory for your ticket. On the walk itself social distancing is easy to maintain.

General Safety Tips: Try and do this walk after a dry period of weather as every walkers dread- mud- will make the riverside return precarious. Take a walking stick and remember to use branches off the beaten path to avoid the mud. The last field before the river can be marshy. Negotiate the field by looking for other routes which are easy to spot. There is an initial steep climb into the woods. Take care at the level crossings.

The Kirkham Priory Walk

Getting There

From Middlesbrough follow the A19 to York. Approaching York take a left turn on the A1237. Follow this to a roundabout and turn left onto the A64. Follow this until you come to a right turning to Kirkham Abbey which is the name of the village. Follow this down over a bridge and Kirkham Priory is on your right and the car park is small but is directly outside the Priory.

Map of the Kirkham Priory walk

The Walk

Explore the Priory first - the ruins have information panels dotted around the site - in particular look for the Winston Churchill panel. Give yourself enough time to explore it. It is a tranquil setting which is fitting for a monastery.

Entrance to the Priory

Look for the panel about Winston Churchill

Exploring the Priory

Begin the walk by turning left and cross over the bridge you came in over and pass the railway line.

Cross over the railway crossing

Look for a path on your left which is a steep climb through the woods.

Turn left into the woods

Keep to the right at a fork in the path. The climb is steep but is fairly short. 

Keep right at the fork in the path

Turn right when you come to a fence as you exit the woods.

Turn right when you come to the fence

The path then comes to a road. Turn left onto the road.

Follow the road to the left

Shortly you come to a gate on the left. Go onto the path through the gap to the left of the gate.

Go through the gap in the left of the gate

The path skirts the edge of the woods for a while until it enters into the woods.

Follow the path into the woods

Follow the path through the woods.

Follow the path through the woods

Soon you come out into a pasture and a gate.

Arrive at the gate

Go onto the field and immediately turn right to follow the field edge which then bends to the left.

Follow the field edge to the right

Follow the field to the left

Head down to the road at the bottom and follow it out as it goes over a cattle grid.

Head down to the road

Go over the stile at the cattle grid

Go over another stile at another cattle grid just before you reach a junction. Turn left and follow the road. 

Turn left at the road junction

Go over another level crossing on the road.

Go over the level crossing

Follow the road out and keep your eyes peeled for a sharp left turn onto a field signalled by a signpost.

Look for the signpost 

Follow the path through the field

Go through a small gate and through another field and over a footbridge.

Go through the gate

Go over the footbridge

In the next field the gate is another straight walk over. If the field is waterlogged look for another way over by following the field edge to your left and towards the gate.

Follow the path through the field

Go through the gate

Turn left and follow the path which sticks to the river. There are a variety of terrains and this is a pleasant walk beside the River Derwent.

Follow the riverside path

Platform on the riverside path

Eventually you will enter back into the woods. If the path is muddy, use your stick for support and look out  for any branches in the path to avoid the muddiest areas. Keep on the path until you enter a small clearing before the bridge.

Turn right and cross the bridge and follow the road back to the Priory.

Kirkham Priory

The ruins of Kirkham Priory are situated on the banks of the River Derwent, at Kirkham, North Yorkshire, England. The Augustinian priory was founded in the 1120s by Walter l'Espec, lord of nearby Helmsley, who also built Rievaulx Abbey. The priory was surrendered in 8 December 1539 during the Dissolution of the Monasteries. Legend has it that Kirkham was founded in remembrance of l'Espec's only son who had died nearby as a consequence of his horse being startled by a boar. The area was later used to test the D-Day landing vehicles, and was visited by Winston Churchill.[2] The ruins are now Grade I listed and in the care of English Heritage.

The Gatehouse of Kirkham Priory, built c. 1290–95, is a specimen of English Gothic medieval architecture. It is a rare survival of such a gatehouse, comparable to that of Butley Priory in Suffolk. It has a wide arch of continuous mouldings with a crocketed gable running up to the windows, with sculptures of S.George and the Dragon on the left, and David and Goliath to the right. Above the arch is Christ in a pointed oval recess, plus two figures below of St. Bartholomew and St. Philip, in niches. There are also many escutcheons with the armorials of the various benefactors of the Priory, including the arms of de Ros, Scrope, de Forz, Vaux, FitzRalph & Espec (3 cart-wheels, each with 6 spokes).

During the Second World War, the priory was used by the military in training for what became the largest seaborne invasion in history, the D-Day landings which took place on 6 June 1944. Amongst units moved to Kirkham were the British 11th armoured division, the aim being to give drivers experience of manoeuvring and to test various waterproofing compounds and to gain experience with equipment to be used in the landings. Tanks, jeeps and other military vehicles destined for the landings were put through their paces at the priory and on the banks of the River Derwent. Troops made use of the high wall of the Western Cloister in training with scrambling nets, which they would subsequently use to make their way from the main transport ships into the smaller landing craft during the invasion. Prime Minister Winston Churchill and King George VI visited the priory in secret to monitor preparations, an indication of Kirkham’s significance as a training ground.