By: Blonde One
The Cleveland Way: one of England’s original National Trails
The Cleveland Way is a 109 mile (175km) trail that starts at Helmsley. The first half crosses the North York Moors National Park, while the second half of the route follows the North Yorkshire coast as far as Filey. Mr Blonde One and I walked 20km of it and despite the fog not really lifting all day, we enjoyed ourselves. There was the obligatory steep coastal path steps as well as meandering paths through woodland and stretches of the trail on the beach. It was an interesting walk with the occasional information board or fingerpost. At the end of the route, at Filey Brigg, there was a very lovely bench and way-marker. The end of the Cleveland Way also signals the beginning of the Yorkshire Wolds Way.
Filey Brigg is apparently well worth a wander to the end but since we were at the end of our walk and it was still quite foggy we decided that it was not really worth wandering down to the end. However, I would definitely like to return on a nicer day. The beaches here are fabulously wide and long; they were quiet enough to wander along without tripping over people and windbreaks.
