The Yorkshire coast extends over a hundred miles—these walks reveal its lesser-known stretches.
Whitby draws crowds for its abbey, steps, harbour, and fish and chips. However, the coast stretching from Staithes to Filey—shaped over millions of years by natural and human forces—offers equally stunning walks with fewer visitors.
Connecting these highlights, the Cleveland Way National Trail links Saltburn to Filey Brigg. Each walk below features its own distinct draws.
Quick Facts
- The Cleveland Way: Established in 1969, it was the second National Trail in England and Wales. The coastal section runs approximately 55 miles from Saltburn to Filey, following cliffs that rise to over 200 metres at their highest point.
- The cliffs have a Jurassic origin. They were laid down between 145 and 200 million years ago. Along this coastline, people have found ammonites, reptile bones, dinosaur footprints, and jet.
- Tides: Some of these walks include sections along the beach. Always check the tide times before you go. Getting cut off by the tide on the North Yorkshire coast is a real danger.
- For navigation, download the AllTrails app before starting any of these walks. Most paths are well-marked, but clifftop routes can be confusing, especially if the weather turns bad.
1. Staithes to Port Mulgrave and Back Distance: 4 miles. Difficulty: Moderate. Start: Staithes Bank Top car park. Key Highlights: panoramic clifftop views along the Cleveland Way, explore Victorian-era ironstone harbour ruins at Port Mulgrave, search for Jurassic fossils on the foreshore, and experience the historic character of Staithes village.
Staithes is in a narrow opening in the cliffs. A steep road leads to its cobbled streets, fishermen’s cottages, and a sheltered harbour. Notably, Captain James Cook began his career here, and Staithes retains its unique historic charm among coastal towns.
Head south on the Cleveland Way from Staithes, climbing for broad sea views. Arrive at Port Mulgrave’s Victorian harbour ruins and ironstone-stained cliffs. Note the clifftop mining cottages. In Staithes, see the harbourfront rebuilt by the sea’s force. Pause at the clifftop pub for a break at either end.
- Fossils: The rock faces at Port Mulgrave are good hunting ground for ammonites and other Jurassic marine fossils. Check the tide before descending to the foreshore.
2. Runswick Bay to Staithes via the Cleveland Way Distance: 8 miles circular. Difficulty: Moderate to strenuous. Start: Runswick Bank Top car park. Key Highlights: stroll on Runswick Bay’s sandy beach, follow clifftop paths with uninterrupted sea views, see Victorian industrial ruins, walk through woodland, and visit historic villages on your return.
The village of Runswick Bay is reached by a steep road from the car park at the top. Its red-roofed cottages sit above a sheltered sandy beach, named one of Britain’s best by The Times. Whether you explore the village before or after your walk, the main route leads north onto the clifftop path from the car park.
Walk north on the Cleveland Way from Runswick Bank Top, cross Lingrow Cliffs, and pass Port Mulgrave’s harbour ruins. Continue past Old Nab, descend into Staithes, climb out, and join the old tramway through Oakrigg Wood. Pass Hinderwell before returning to Runswick.
St Hilda’s Church in Hinderwell stands by a holy well that has drawn pilgrims since medieval times. St Hilda, Abbess of Whitby, remains an influential local figure.
- Worth Knowing: Boulby Cliff, passed on the Cleveland Way between Skinningrove and Staithes to the north, is the highest cliff on the east coast of England. It is worth a separate short detour from Staithes for anyone with energy to spare.
- Where to Stay: The Runswick Bay Hotel sits directly on the Cleveland Way at the bank top and has rooms with views across the bay.
3. Ravenscar to Robin Hood’s Bay via the Cinder Track Distance: 7 miles circular. Difficulty: Moderate. Start: Ravenscar village car park. Key Highlights: walk through Ravenscar’s streets planned as a ghost town, see industrial alum works remains, pass a WWII radar station, take in broad coastal views, and discover Robin Hood’s Bay’s fossil beaches.
Ravenscar provides a unique stop on the Yorkshire coast. In 1890, developers planned a town here, building streets, a station, and drainage. However, the project failed, leaving most of the clifftop land empty and the old plans to fade back into the grass.
From Ravenscar, follow the Cleveland Way north past Peak Alum Works’ earthworks. Continue above a visible WWII radar station and descend directly into Robin Hood’s Bay.
Further on, pass a WWII radar station and enter Robin Hood’s Bay, known for narrow lanes and fossil-rich beaches at low tide.
Return south on the Cinder Track, a former railway offering open farmland and sweeping bay views.
- Worth Knowing: Boggle Hole, roughly halfway between Robin Hood’s Bay and Ravenscar on the Cleveland Way, is a smugglers’ cove where the youth hostel is housed in an old mill. It is one of the more atmospherically situated on any coast in England.
4. Hayburn Wyke: The Secret Waterfall Cove Distance: 5 miles circular. Difficulty: Moderate, featuring a steep descent to the cove. Start: Car park near the Hayburn Wyke Inn. Key Highlights: view a rare double waterfall onto the beach, walk through wildlife-rich woodland, admire dramatic cliffs, and enjoy a quiet pebble shore.
Most visitors to the Yorkshire coast never find this walk. Hayburn Wyke, a National Trust nature reserve, features Hayburn Beck, which flows over cliffs to create a double waterfall that drops straight onto the beach. This is one of the rare places in England where a waterfall meets the sea.
The name Hayburn Wyke comes from Anglo-Saxon and Norse words, meaning a hunting area by a sea inlet. Now a National Trust nature reserve, the woodland was replanted after World War II and is home to deer, foxes, badgers, and many bird species.
Start from the inn and follow the Cleveland Way north for cliff views. Descend the steep, wooded path to Hayburn Wyke’s pebble beach and double waterfall. Climb through the woods to rejoin the Cinder Track for a gentle return.
Climb through woodland and rejoin the Cinder Track for a flat return along the old railway.
- Worth Knowing: Tide times matter here. The beach is accessible only around low tide. Check before descending.
5. Robin Hood’s Bay Circular: Clifftop, Beach and Cinder Track Distance: 6 miles circular. Difficulty: Moderate. Start: Robin Hood’s Bay upper village car park. Key Highlights: hunt for fossils on the beach, enjoy panoramic bay views from the cliffs, learn local smuggling history, and follow a scenic, varied route.
Begin at the upper village, descend to the beach, and walk south at low tide to hunt fossils. Leave the beach, ascend to the Cleveland Way for wide bay views, then complete the loop north along the cliffs.
Robin Hood’s Bay’s lower village clings to the hillside above the beck. In the 18th century, it was a smuggling hub, with goods passing through hidden tunnels and cellars.
The beach south of the village is one of the best fossil sites on the coast. The scars—ridges of rock exposed at low tide—are made of Jurassic shale and sandstone. Ammonites appear here often. Jet, a semi-precious black gemstone used in Victorian mourning jewellery, can be found in the cliff faces along this section.
The Cleveland Way heading back north gives you wide views across the whole bay, with Ravenscar to the south and the bay stretching out below.
- Worth Knowing: The Bay Hotel in the lower village sits directly on the waterfront and has rooms. It is one of the most genuinely positioned pubs on the coast.
6. Sandsend to Kettleness via Mulgrave Woods Distance: 11 miles circular. Difficulty: Strenuous. Start: Sandsend beach car park. Key Highlights: take in wide sea vistas, walk through ancient Mulgrave Woods, explore the ruins of historic Mulgrave Castle, climb hilly terrain, and enjoy peaceful rural and clifftop scenery.
This is the longest and most varied walk here. It combines a sandy beach village, old private woodland now open to walkers, the ruins of a medieval castle, high clifftop farmland, and the remote headland of Kettleness.
From Sandsend, take a footpath climbing into Mulgrave Woods on the Mulgrave Estate, open certain days. In the woods, discover the ruined 13th-century castle in a ravine and a neighbouring Norman-era fort. Both lie within a short walk of each other.
Continue through the woods and up to open farmland, passing Lythe village with its ridge-top church and a Roman signal station site. Descend to Kettleness, a remote headland once home to alum works and 19th-century jet mines. See the remains of the Kettleness railway station, then return on the Cleveland Way’s southern clifftop path to Sandsend.
- Worth Knowing: Mulgrave Woods is open on Wednesdays, Saturdays and public holidays, with some exceptions. Check the estate website before visiting. Entry is permitted only for walkers on foot.
- Refreshments: The Hart Inn in Sandsend serves food using locally sourced fish and is a good starting or ending point.
7. Runswick Bay Beach and Clifftop Short Circular Distance: 2.5 miles. Difficulty: Easy. Start: Runswick Bank Top car park.
You don’t need a whole day for every walk on this coast. This short circular route from the Runswick Bank Top car park visits the beach village, the sheltered sandy bay (named one of Britain’s best by The Times), and a short stretch of the Cleveland Way before looping back. It’s suitable for most people, family-friendly, and shows off what makes this part of the coast special in just a couple of miles.
The descent to the village is steep, and the path back up requires effort, but the walk itself is gentle. The beach faces west into the shelter of the bay, and the swimming is among the safest on this coastline. Runswick Bay also has a history of lifeboats: the first was stationed here in 1866 after a storm destroyed most of the village’s fishing fleet and killed several fishermen. The current lifeboat station is still active.
At low tide, the rock pools at the southern end of the beach are excellent for children and reveal a good cross-section of intertidal life, including blennies, shore crabs and several species of seaweed.
- Worth Knowing: Parking at Runswick Bank Top is pay-and-display and fills quickly in summer. Early arrival is strongly advised, particularly at weekends in July and August.
- Where to Stay: The Runswick Bay Hotel at the top of the village has five en-suite rooms directly on the Cleveland Way.
8. Filey Brigg Circular Distance: 4 miles. Difficulty: Easy to moderate. Start: Filey Brigg Country Park car park.
Filey Brigg marks the southern end of the North Yorkshire coastal walk. This narrow rocky peninsula sticks out into the sea at the end of Filey Bay. The Cleveland Ways finishes here, marked by a carved stone with the names of places along the route. The Yorkshire Wolds Way also starts from this spot.
The cliffs at Filey Brigg are a Site of Special Scientific Interest. They contain 150 million years of geological record in the layered strata of sandstone and limestone, and the rock is among the best-documented for Jurassic marine life in England. Local legend claims the Brigg is the spine of a dragon, which gives some sense of how the rock formations strike those who encounter them for the first time.
The circular walk from the country park visits the Brigg, the clifftops above Filey Bay, the rock pools below, and then returns through Filey town. Filey is a pleasant Victorian seaside resort, much quieter than Scarborough and often missed by visitors. Its beach is one of the widest and best in northern England.
- Worth Knowing: The rock platforms along the Brigg are extraordinarily rich in marine life at low tide. Rock pools here hold cushion stars, dog whelks and a wide range of crab species. Take care on the wet rocks, which are extremely slippery.
- Where to Stay: The Downcliffe House Hotel in Filey occupies a clifftop position above the beach and is one of the better-positioned small hotels on this coastline.
Practical Tips
- Download the AllTrails app for all the routes listed here. The Cleveland Way is usually well-marked, but the app’s GPS is very helpful if visibility is poor or you’re on a remote section.
- Tide times are critical for walks involving beach sections, particularly Robin Hood’s Bay, Ravenscar, Runswick Bay and Filey Brigg. The BBC Tide Tables and local tourist information boards both provide accurate times.
- The North York Moors National Park website holds detailed walking information for all routes within the park boundary. Several of these walks fall partly or entirely within it.
- You’ll need good waterproof boots for all these walks. Clifftop paths are often muddy, and the paths down to the beach can be slippery. These walks are not just for summer—be prepared for all conditions.
- The Cinder Track, which returns walkers on the Robin Hood’s Bay and Ravenscar routes, is shared with cyclists. Be aware, particularly on the flat sections, where speed can be high.
Responsible Visiting
The North Yorkshire coast is both a place where people live and work, and a spot for visitors. Staithes and Robin Hood’s Bay are real communities, not just tourist sites. Always park in the proper car parks. Follow cliff-edge warnings, as the cliffs can be unstable. Don’t take fossils from protected sites, and leave rock pools as you find them. Keep dogs on leads on clifftops and check them for ticks after walking through moorland or woods.
Reader Q&A
Which of these walks is best for beginners? The Runswick Bay Beach and Clifftop Short Circular at 2.5 miles is accessible for most abilities and gives a genuine flavour of the coast in a short distance. The Filey Brigg Circular is similarly manageable, and the terrain is less demanding than the northern sections of the Cleveland Way.
Can I walk the whole coast in one trip? The full coastal section of the Cleveland Way from Saltburn to Filey is approximately 55 miles and is typically completed over four to six days. Several walking holiday operators offer self-guided trips with luggage transfer, including Macs Adventure and Mickledore Travel. Walking it in sections over several visits, using public transport to link the start and end points, is a practical alternative.
Is the coast good to walk in winter? Yes. Winter walks on the Cleveland Way are quieter and often clearer than summer, with better long-distance visibility from the clifftops. The light in winter on this coast, particularly in the late afternoon, is exceptional. Some cafés and car parks operate reduced hours, so check ahead. The Hayburn Wyke waterfall is at its most dramatic after heavy rain, which makes autumn and winter visits particularly rewarding.
Where is the best fossil hunting? Robin Hood’s Bay beach at low tide and the foreshore below Port Mulgrave are two of the most productive sites. Kettleness is also good. Ammonites, belemnites and bivalve fossils are the most common finds. The Jet occurs on the cliff faces between Whitby and Staithes. It is legal to take loose fossils from the beach, but not to remove them from cliff faces or from designated Sites of Special Scientific Interest.
Most people start exploring this coastline at Whitby, and it’s a great place to begin. But the coast stretches far beyond, with fishing villages that look much as they did a hundred years ago, old industrial ruins full of stories, and clifftops where you hear only the wind and the sea far below. The walks above are designed to help you discover all of this.
