England - North York Moors - Flamborough Fandango (V)
England - North York Moors - Flamborough Fandango (V)
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Walk Summary
Walk Summary
A long walk, much of it cliffside walking with dramatic views of massive sea cliffs. Visits the RSPB site at Bempton Cliffs where you can watch thousands of birds swoop, glide and roost. Follows the coastal path around Flamborough Head with amazing views of the coves and sea caves. A stunning walk for landscape and nature.
Date: 06/10/2021
Length: 15.1 miles
Height Gain: 290 m
Terrain: Grassy boggy paths, rocky paths, cliffside walking, woodland walking, roads.
Navigation: Good. Signage is good.
Start: Danes' Dyke Car Park, Flamborough
Route: Danes' Dyke Car Park, Flamborough, Bempton Cliffs (Out And Back), Flamborough Head, Dykes End
Map: OS301 Scarborough, Bridlington And Flamborough Head
Weather: Rain in morning, very windy, brightened up in afternoon
Walkers: Nun
Gallery
Gallery
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Bempton Cliffs Gannet
Captain's Log
Captain's Log
Danes' Dyke
Danes' Dyke
It was still dark when I finally arrived at the Danes' Dyke car park and rain soon made the windscreen a blur. At times like these I know it's best not to delay and within a couple of minutes I was trudging through dark woodland towards Flamborough village. A strong wind had now joined the gloom and driving rain, and it successfully blew me through Flamborough and deposited me on a straight path north to the coast. The Thornwick Holiday Village, on my right, wasn't exuding much of an holiday atmosphere under such conditions. The long straight path finally delivered me on to the North Cliff edge. My route would now take an 'out-and-back' up to Bempton Cliffs. The wind was that strong I had a genuine fear that one might have enough strength to pick me up and throw me over the cliff. The cliff path though does have a reasonable margin of safety though, and after a few minutes I was battling through the gusts as though I'd be doing so all my life.
Bempton Cliffs - Staple Newk
Bempton Cliffs
Bempton Cliffs
My reason for including Bempton Cliffs on my walk today was that I'd read somewhere about their size. They are around 100 metres high at some points. I'd no idea about the huge bird colonies that roost on its face. There must have been thousands of birds along the cliffs. A welcome surprise indeed. The RSPB have built a number of excellent viewing platforms along the cliffs so that you can watch the spectacle in safety. The most spectacular viewing platforms allowed me to look down on to the sea arch of Staple Newk. Bempton Cliffs deserves more than the 2 hours I spent there and I promised to return in the near future.
A little further along beyond the RSPB site, I came across an old RAF Radar Station.(RAF Bempton). There are some curious concrete stanchions in the shape of a Y. Wikipedia says that these are indicative of the top secret High Speed Passive Array Radar called Winkie. It all is very hush-hush so I'll not say any more.
It was difficult to drag myself away from Bempton Cliffs, but with some effort, I did. I started walking back towards Flamborough and for the first time that day, the wind actually assisted me.
Bempton Cliffs Gannets
Flamborough Barn Owl
Flamborough Head
Flamborough Head
Flamborough Head really does tick all the boxes: cliffs, sea caves, coves, wildlife, beaches, lighthouses and cafes. I would have liked a little more time to explore some of the coves, but there just wasn't enough light in the day. This might have been a better walk in summer, than October, although it would be a lot more crowded. As I approached the lighthouse I noticed a barn owl hovering above some heathland. It made several passes through the air, but failed to find any supper. The tide was coming in and the sea a white froth. I was particular impressed with a shark like fin of a pinnacle.
Flamborough Head Pinnacle
Dykes End Seal
Return To Danes' Dyke
Return To Danes' Dyke
As I walked away from Flamborough Head, the cliffs got a little lower and even the sun came out. I'd taken many photos during the day of what I thought were seal heads, but turned out to be lobster-pot-buoys when I inspected them on the computer at home. So for seven lobster-pot buoy-shots I got this one of a seal in recompense. At last I got to Dykes End where I turned from the coast, inland to the car park. On the map Danes' Dyke can be seen traversing the Flamborough headland, north to south. I didn't see much evidence of it, although at my location, on the south side, the creators had the benefit of a ravine. Its origins are actually unknown. The only one thing that is known and accepted is that it wasn't built by the Danes. At the northern end of the dyke it is 20 metres wide and 6 metres deep and so whoever built it did so for a good reason...they could, of course, have had too much time on their hands.
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