After my time in Northumberland, I took a train from Alnmouth to Saltburn-by-the-Sea in North Yorkshire to meet up with JJ and his family. The following day JJ and I planned to hire a car and drive to Ilkley in West Yorkshire for my sister’s wedding. We decided on a longer scenic route so we could explore some of the beautiful spots in North York Moors National Park as well as Yorkshire Dales National Park. Here are all the lovely places we stopped between the coast and Ilkley Moor.

NORTH YORK MOORS NATIONAL PARK

I took these photos somewhere off the B1257. We pulled over for a bit of a wander through the gorgeous purply goodness. Just “Beware the moon lads, and stick to the roads. Stay off the moors” after dark. We’ve all seen An American Werewolf in London right?

This upland area in north-eastern Yorkshire contains one of the largest expanses of heather moorland in the UK. It’s a designated Site of Special Scientific Interest for its heathland habitat and ground-nesting birds, like grouses, curlews and plovers. Looks very pretty in photos too 💜

RIEVAULX ABBEY

Hidden in the River Rye valley are the impressive ruins of one of England’s most powerful Cistercian monasteries. Founded around 1130, Rievaulx like many other medieval monasteries was disbanded during Henry VIII’s 1530s dissolution.

Entry to the site cost us £11.20 each which included a donation to English Heritage. In addition to walking around the ruins, you can check out the museum or grab a treat in the café. Well worth a visit.

LUNCH IN BAGBY VILLAGE

Admittedly, we’d done zero research on places to stop for lunch, and so just picked a countryside pub that we liked the look of. After turning into The Greyhound’s car park and a quick check of Tripadvisor, we decided to trust our instincts and they weren’t wrong!

As well as the usual British favourites, this inn offers a few different Turkish dishes. I had Tavuklu Patlican Oturtma – stuffed aubergine. JJ had Tavuk Sis – chargrilled marinated chicken. Both meals were delish and Laz who served us was welcoming and friendly. The perfect re-fuel for our next stop.

MALHAM COVE

One of the most striking natural features of Yorkshire Dales National Park is this 80-metre-high, 300-metre-wide curved limestone cove. It’s an easy, mostly flat ramble from the Malham Visitor Centre car park to the base of the crag. From there you can continue up a stone staircase to admire the stunning clifftop view.

Scenes for Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (Part 1) were filmed on Malham Cove’s clifftop limestone pavement. Although you can hike up and walk all around the location, you’re not actually allowed to camp there like Harry and Hermione did in the movie.

So that was all we had time for on this day trip. I’ve no doubt this won’t be my last excursion to the county of Yorkshire, it certainly wasn’t my first. There are just so many amazing places to discover in this historic region!

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