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I am now much more conscious of the mark Yorkshire has left on me, and although I have not lived there for a long time, I retain a very special attachment to this particular area of the country - and to the particular part of the county - where I was born - the area of the North Riding and the North Yorkshire Moors.
In these pages, I consider some significant features of Yorkshire life and history.
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Colouring: CBicknell
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North Yorkshire Moors National Park The North Yorkshire Moors National Park was so designated in 1952. It is renowned for having the largest area of unenclosed heather moorland in England. The area forms a patchwork of upland heath. It is important internationally as a home for grouse, curlew, merlin and golden plover. The eastern boundary of the National Park is where the moors meet the North Sea. It gives a coastline of rugged cliffs, of wide sandy beaches and of small river inlets. This is now designated as the North Yorkshire & Cleveland Heritage Coast. It includes so much that is of interest to both young and old. The high moorland is crossed by an amazing variety of dales, many of them running in parallel southwards from the northern scarp slope, whilst the beautiful valley of the River Esk runs in an easterly direction to reach the sea at Whitby. Some of the dales are narrow and secluded, with woodland clinging to steep sides, whilst others are wide and covered in pasture or moorland turf, with an ancient and distinctive landscape of drystone walls and hedges - created by the many generations of agricultural workers who have lived and farmed here. In spring there are acres of daffodils, and of bluebells. In August and September the moors are covered in purple heather. To add to this, as the moorlands tumble towards the sea, there are beautiful ancient fishing villages along the coast. The main visitor centre for the Park is The Moors Centre, in Danby. There are other visitor centres at Sutton Bank and in the Old Coastguard Station at Robin Hood's Bay. But the reason why the North Yorkshire Moors are so very special is probably summed up best by Aelred, Abbot of Riveaulx Abbey from 1142 to 1167, who wrote: "Everywhere peace, everywhere serenity, and a marvellous freedom from the tumult of the world." Riveaulx is in a beautiful location, and is so typical of the whole of the Moors National Park of which it is a part.
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Cleveland Lyke Wake Dirge
This yah neet, this yah neet,
When thoo frae hence away art passed
If ivver thoo gay owther hosen or shoon,
Bud if hosen an' shoon thoo nivver gay neean,
Frae Whinny Moor when thoo art passed
If ivver thoo gav o' thy siller an' gowd,
Bud if siller an' gowd thoo nivver gav neean,
Frae t'Brig o' Dreead when thoo art passed
Ivvery neet an' all,
If ivver thoo gav owther bite or sup,
Bud if bite or sup thoo nivver gav neean,
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As already mentioned, the North Yorkshire Moors National Park contains the largest stretch of heather moorland in England. One way of crossing it on foot would be to carry out the Lyke Wake Walk. The Walk was begun in 1955. It is not of ancient origin, but was initially proposed by a local farmer, Bill Cowley, in The Dalesman, with a challenge that it be done within 24 hours. The walk is normally done from west to east starting from Scarth Wood Moor, near Osmotherley, the western edge of the Cleveland Hills, and continuing on an easterly course across the moors until the coast is reached at Ravenscar. The Lyke Wake Dirge was not perhaps the inspiration for the walk but it has become associated with it for a number of reasons, as Bill Cowley himself explains: 'This Dirge is probably our oldest dialect verse. John Aubrey wrote in 1686 "The beliefe in Yorkshire was amongst the vulgar (perhaps is in part still) that after the person's death the soule went over Whinny-Moore, and till about 1616-24 at the funerale a woman came and sang the following song." Richard Blakeborough records that it was last sung at a funeral near Kildale about 1800. The Dirge was known widely in the North - Sir Walter Scott had a version -but the Cleveland form seems more authentic. "Wake" means the watching over a corpse, and "Lyke" is the corpse itself- as in the "lych" gate of a church-c/f. German "leich ". … there is no suggestion that corpses were carried over the Lyke Wake Walk, and the connection between Walk and Dirge is merely that members of the first party to do the Walk, like many who have done it since, finding themselves in the middle of Wheeldale Moor at 3 a.m. felt a great sympathy with all the souls who have to do such a crossing, and a real affection for the poetry of the Dirge-its stark simplicity, repetitions, and dramatic power. Perhaps only those who have crossed Wheeldale or Fylingdales Moors with storm and darkness threatening can fully appreciate the beauty of the Lyke Wake Dirge.
From: 'Lyke Wake Walk' by Bill Cowley
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National Park
109 miles (175 km) This walk is one of the most interesting and varied in England. The footpaths follow a route full of contrast and of both natural and historical interest. It falls almost entirely within the boundaries of the North Yorks Moors National Park, and was inaugurated as the Cleveland Way, one of the 12 designated National Trails, in 1969. For much of its way it follows ancient tracks, beginning across high moorland, and continuing with a long coastal section. It commences at the southern end of Ryedale in Helmsley, moving first in a westerly direction. It follows the Hambleton Hills, turning north and then east to continue along the northern scarp slope of the Cleveland Hills. The Way then continues southwards along the east Yorkshire coast to Filey. The first section of the walk crosses wild heather-clad moorland. It then continues along rugged coastal scenery (including the highest sea cliffs on the east coast) passing through several ancient fishing villages. There are many historical remains to be seen along the way. Unlike the Lyke Wake Walk there is no time limit to the Cleveland Way Walk. It doesn't have to be done as an entity. It can be enjoyed at leisure taken section by section, enjoying the history and the moorland and coastal scenery. The walk takes in the length of Yorkshire's Heritage Coast and the section around Ravenscar follows for a number of miles, the route of the Lyke Wake Walk. This also forms part of Wainwright's Coast to Coast Walk.
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Some places of particular interest on or near the Cleveland Way Walk:-
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