North Yorkshire Coastal Route - Pt 2

Staithes to Sandsend

The short journey from Saltburn By The Sea to Staithes was approximately 9 miles, heading south by car along the North Yorkshire Coastal Route. The tiny fishing village of Staithes is a place I've visited on many occasions, mainly to photograph it from the many vantage points along its steep cliffs and hilltops. Exploring the many back streets is one thing, but it's not until you 'Get up top' that you see what Staithes is all about. From the dizzy heights of Cowbar Nab you are able to see right across the rooftops of picturesque Staithes - a sight that almost has you believing you've travelled back in time, judging by the old fashioned buildings that have deliberately been left untouched over decades (shot one). The place is oozing character - you only have to walk its streets to witness this. The powers that be must be hellbent on retaining Staithes' character so much so that planning permission for any building work must be considered very carefully. There's not a great deal in Staithes to attract the tourist to be honest, other than it's Olde Worlde existance and its photogenic attraction. Shops are very few and far between, there's a couple of pubs and the odd antique shop and art gallery. The Cod & Lobster is where you'll find a decent Real Ale, if you're that way inclined. No decent food on offer though - toastie's were as good as it got - no thanks missus, I'll give that one a rain check. On each occasion I've been to Staithes it's been blue skies all the way, but chilly also. Odd that - maybe it's like that most of the time. I have an uncanny habit of turning up when the tide is out - something that I'll have to put right next time as photographs from Cowbar Nab are much better when the tethered boats are floating on water, as opposed to sitting lopsided on dry harbour. I'll have to check the tide tables prior to my next showing.  

From Staithes we headed south through Loftus, eventually stopping off on Lythe Bank to photograph a stretch of great coastline from Sandsend, heading towards Whitby. Conditions were ideal - visibility was perfect as I photographed the coastline from Lythe Bank (shot two), next to the Church Of St Oswald. Some fine beach lay straight ahead of me, with its clean sands, so I spent a short while photographing it using a bog standard 18-135mm lens, followed by a 300mm Telephoto, to pull in the scene from afar.  This was to be our last stop before the 3 mile journey to our next port of call - Whitby. The weather was kind to us and it made for ideal photography conditions once again. Hang about and bring ya more photo's. The wait won't be too long (wink).

AC  

North Yorkshire Coastal Route - Pt 1

Saltburn By The Sea

Another day out by the sea, from Houghton le Spring to Robin Hood's Bay, via the North-Yorkshire coastal route. No car journey from Tyne & Wear to the quiet olde worlde fishing village of Robin Hood's Bay would be the same by taking the 'Route One' path, missing out the towns and views that lie in between. This stretch of coastline has a lot to offer the tourist, if he or she is prepared to go looking for it, so you'd be cheating yourself if you didn't make the effort. I say this because of the picturesque towns and villages that lie along the coast, just waiting to be picked off, one after another. Forty Four miles into the journey we find ourselves at our first stop-off, at Saltburn By The Sea, a town that has retained much of its charm as a Victorian seaside resort. Saltburn has the oldest water-balanced cliff tramway that is still in operation, linking the town with the pier 120 feet below. You can park the car at sea level where the old fishing village straddles Skelton Beck. The Ship Inn remains as a focal point, steeped in smuggling folklore, but there wasn't time to prop up the bar today, opting for Fish n' Chips at lunchtime instead. The takeaway next to the pier car park comes well recommended - trust me.

The fully operational Water Tram Lift and Pier are without doubt the most eye-catching attractions at Saltburn, which is why I decided to photograph them during our one hour pit stop. The weather was fine, although a tad on the windy/chilly side, and the fluffy clouds had me reaching into the 'Tool Box' for my Circular Polariser - a must for these conditions. My first shot shows Saltburn Pier, stretching out towards the North Sea, propping up many a visitor that decided to tread its boards. A stretch of pier railings was adorned with knitted figures to commemorate thesforthcoming Olympic Games in London, although mystery surrounds the origins of this artwork and who was responsible for attaching it to the pier. Rumour spread recently that it was attached to the railings during the early hours when no-one was around to witness it. Dozens of knitted characters, featuring athletes from various disciplines, such as Cycling, Running, Rowing, Fencing and Swimming, covered at least 40 feet of the pier railings - hours of work and effort, from an unknown creator! A small section of it is shown in my second photograph.

After lunch we headed, rather gingerly, up the steps towards the top of the Water Lift tracks. From here there was an excellent view across the bay of Saltburn, including the Beach, Pier and Water Lift, right ahead of us. A brief history of the Water lift...

The two 10 person cars are each fitted with a 1,000 imperial gallons (4,500 L) water tank, and run on parallel standard gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) funicular railway tracks. Double steel wire ropes are attached to both cars, controlled by a brakeman in the upper station. The car at the top has its water tank filled until its mass exceeds the mass of the car at the bottom. It then travels down the incline, counter-balanced by the mass of the other car, which travels to the top, with the brakeman controlling safety and the speed of travel. When the car reaches the bottom, its water is released thus reducing the mass of the lower car, and pumped back up to the top of the cliff. It is believed that the Cliff Lift opened on Saturday 28 June 1884, but there was a period of inconsistent operation at the start. The opening of the Cliff Lift allowed the pier company to undertake an extension to that structure. The original cars, capable of seating 10-12 passengers, had stained-glass windows. But when the Cliff Lift was refurbished in 1955, the car bodies were replaced without these. When the wholly new aluminium cars were introduced in 1979, modelled on the original design, stained-glass windows were reinstated. Owned since post-World War II by the local council, Marks' design was so good that, beyond maintenance and refurbishment, little has changed since 1884. In 1924 an electrically operated water pump was installed, and in 1998 the main winding wheel was replaced for the first time, together with the installation of a new hydraulic braking system.

The best view across the sands were up top next to the Water lift, as it led the eye straight into the composition, taking me through the frame that was interesting from front to back. Positioning the moving Tram in the composition was pretty straightforward - I thought the shot would balance better with the car at a certain point on the track as I fired the shutter. It worked well, as did another effort with the stationery car at the top, preparing its descent to the promenade below. Many a lazy bugger used the tram lift, opting to dodge the steps, taking the preferred soft option. Mind you, if it wasn't for the lazy folk there would have been no tram movement and ultimately no photographs of it in operation - so maybe I should take back those criticisms and thank myself lucky. Maybe I've just had too much my own way, he he, Fish n' Chips weshed doon wi Coca-Cola - not to be sniffed at. Returning to the car we found we were blocked in by an Ambulance, for a good 30 minutes. Lights flashing, and judging the way the Ambulance was bouncing up and down it seemed someone inside was most definitely in a bad way. Eventually it drove off - lights off and no sirens - not a good sign.

We then headed down the coast to our next anchorage, Staithes - A 9 mile journey to another idyllic fishing village on the North-Yorkshire Coast. Coming next...

Cheers, Ash

Woodland Walks, Bedale, North Yorkshire

Hello again, and welcome to another blog entry of mine. My site updates have been sparse lately due to other commitments - mainly printing, mounting and framing. I've taken time out tonight to give you an insight into our recent visit to Bedale in North Yorkshire. As part of a family day out we visited Ripon and Harrogate, before stopping off in Bedale. The weather was kind, infact very kind as the whole day was filled with bright sunshine and good temperature, making conditions ideal for getting off the beaten track and taking in some photography in the bargain. Bedale is a bustling market town which lies between the North Yorkshire Dales and the North Yorkshire Moors, in the district of Hambleton.

The Riverside, although technically not a river, Bedale Beck makes a pleasant backdrop for walks and visiting points of interest along the way, including the Heritage Trail. Designed by the local Heritage Trust, the Heritage Trail provides an excellent insight into the extent of Bedale's colourful past. And it's colour all the way as you walk the many designated paths through the wooded areas and also the riverside route. We walked for miles, passing mant points of interest that I captured from behind the lens. A variation of colour awaits you at every turn, including daffs, cherry blossom and bluebells. There was even a sudden burst of bright red in the form of some stray tulips - strategically planted just off the main path behind the fence. An example of it is shown here.

Springtime is always full of activity and colour where plants and flowers are concerned. I'm not a big fan of this kind of photography to be honest, but sometimes seeing full bloom just isn't enough, so the camera records the moment for future reference. I like to think I've captured it quite well here. Today's photography was on the back of my recent visit to Mowbray Gardens in Sunderland, where once again I found myself capturing a burst of colour amongst the flowerbeds. At the turn of the year (2011) I made the decision to capture as many colourful flower shots as possible, mainly due to the fact that I had virtually no stock library and also my plans to include them on calendars and postcard designs. I'm not finished yet - I've earmarked more places of interest where I'm guaranteed some decent shots - just waiting the right weather and I'm off!

Bedale was an ideal stop off and another place I shall revisit, maybe in Autumn when the place will be bathed in more colour. We had a nice bar meal in the Three Coopers Inn before heading home. Proper real ale too, although I gave it a miss as I was soon behind the wheel and northbound on the A1(M). A nice day all round - weather, scenery, pub grub and photography - why man, ya cannit get vexed!

Thanks for stopping by. I'll be back soon.
Ash

Fountains Abbey, Ripon

We've had some great weather recently, especially over the Easter period. During this time I made a visit to the North Yorkshire town of Ripon, which is approximately 56 miles from my base in Houghton le Spring. Ripon is the home of Fountains Abbey, the largest abbey ruins in the UK, which is situated in the Skell Valley and has 800 years of history behind it. The abbey was founded in 1132 by 13 Benedictine monks seeking a simpler life. They later became Cistercian monks. The River Skell runs through the valley and under The Abbey - which in itself is a masterpiece of twelfth century building ingenuity. It's quite easy to soak up the spiritual atmosphere, almost losing yourself in the passages, staircases and towers that display ancient architectural craftsmanship at its very best. I've visited a few ancient sites during the past few months and I'd safely say that I probably won't see another of this size for some time to come, unless it's somewhere overseas.

My first shot (shown here) was taken as I arrived in the abbey grounds from the footpath which began at the site entrance which was only a few minutes walk. It shows Fountains Abbey, straddled bya huge lawn - one of two that flank the east and west sides of the abbey. From here I made my way inside the abbey to an area known as the cellarium, which is shown in my second shot. Amazingly the cellarium roof has remained intact and the lay brothers ate, slept and socialised here, beneath the incredible vaulted ceiling which escaped Henry VIII’s brutal sixteenth century dissolution of the abbeys. Today the inhabitants are protected species of bat who live in the ceiling nooks and only come out after dusk. It is estimated there are over eight species of bats living in the cellarium. During the Autumn the cellarium is lit by coloured bulbs as part of the illumination tours that the National Trust runs at the site at dusk. Someone climbed down an embankment and into the far window of the cellarium as I took the shot, which you can see here.

From the cellarium I walked through to the cloister area which was surprisingly quiet, but ideal for photography, despite the high volume of visitors to the site while I was there. Once used for meditation and exercise by the monks the cloisters formed the centre of the abbey and many rooms lead off from this area, including the warming room where you can still see the huge fireplace where a fire was always kept roaring. Above the warming room up the external staircase to the left, is the muniments room where the monks kept all their important documents, it made sense to keep them above the warming room so the documents stayed dry in all seasons. The floor tiles in this room have just been refurbished and the room has recently been opened to visitors.

Today I was photographing solely with my 10-22mm wide angle lens. This glass is tailor-made for tight architectural passages and alleyways, plus the low level shots of overhead stonwork such as archways and high windows - perfect examples of which were found in the church area of the abbey. The dominating tower also got the wide angle treatment as I stood very close to its base. I have a selection of images, approximately 25, that I will be uploading to my web site ashleycorr.com in the next couple of days. They will form a new gallery page that is dedicated to Fountains Abbey and it will get the usual slideshow treatment with accompanying music.

The surprising thing about this National Trust site is that Fountains Abbey only forms a small part of what is actually on offer to the visitor. The grounds also extend to Studley Royal, a huge estate of beauty including the Georgian Water Gardens, a deer park, Anne Boleyn's Seat, Studley Lake and the Serpentine Tunnel, to name just a few. I'll have to cover that lot another day, as my three hour visit was over in no time and I only visited the abbey!

Anyway, that's about it for now. Keep an eye out for the new Fountains Abbey gallery which is due to go live shortly. You'll get an insight into the ancient ruins through my camera lens. I hope I done it justice. Until then, see ya next time.

Stacks of new photo's to get through!
Ash

Whitby Sunrise

It's 5am and I'm traveling from our base at Robin Hood's Bay to the nearby North-Yorkshire town of Whitby. Yes, that's right - 5am !! In my still rather tired state I keep asking myself what the hell am I doing. I mean, I could be tucked up in that nice warm bed, knocking out those zedders, yet here I am on this cold morning in search of a nice sunrise shot over Whitby Harbour. It's always a gamble when you rise early for sunrise photography. I've lost count of the times I've showed up at the crack of dawn, but the sun hasn't. Low cloud on the horizon can often make your efforts a complete waste of time, but striking lucky can make those efforts all the more worthwhile, and that was what I was hoping for.

I parked up on West Cliff shortly before sunrise. There wasn't a soul about. It was very quiet, as you would expect. Just the odd seagull calling here and there. A fishing boat left the harbour below my vantage point on the cliff, and in all probability, the crew were in search of those rather nice cod that Whitby is famous for serving up.

The sky was fairly clear, and I was hopeful for a few nice shots when the sun finally made an appearance on the horizon. A man and his dog walked by as I set up my tripod - he must have thought I'd lost the plot, taking photographs at this mad hour! But, you've gotta break a couple of rules to get the shots you want, regardless of the time and location. So, I was in position and the sun came up at 5.20am. I snapped away, rattling off a dozen or so frames, before beating a hasty retreat to the car. As I returned to Robin Hood's Bay, a wild deer ran across the road, just missing my car. It jumped over a broken fence and ran off into the distance. Five minutes later I was back in bed and off to sleep. A couple of hours later I was outa bed and in the shower, before being treated to a lovely cup of tea and a massive bacon sandwich, courtesy of my wife. She knows the score...aye, brown sauce anarl!!! I then reflected on my early rise by checking my 'Whitby Sunrise' shots. I was quite pleased with them. It was well worth the effort.

Ash