Yorkshire or bust - Sat 4 Jul

We made such good time heading for Yorkshire that we deviated through the North Yorkshire Moors and Dales and ended up at Scarborough where we visited Scarborough Castle. It was built on a high but large headland which dominates the surrounding sea and land. The headland could only be reasonably reached via a narrow, sloping track covered by battlements and the castle keep. The keep (see picture) was bombarded in the Civil War and the defenders were starved out. The headland has apparently been occupied even prior to the Romans who built a big beacon tower there and a small chapel was erected on the Roman foundations in about 1000AD. (As usual see our photo albums at the site previously advised on this blog)
We then went up to Whitby - what a mistake - there were thousands of weekend drivers attempting to fill a couple of hundred parking spots. Obviouslyit is a very popular place to visit. In the end we just gave up trying to park near the harbour and headed off to the village of Goathland which was the village given the fictitious name of Aidensfield in the BBC series "Heartland" so much loved by Vija. Lots of visitors again, mostly by coaches, but parking was relatively easy. It's an astonishing village which is part of the Duchy of Lancaster which tends to ensure that very little change occurs. Sheep wander through the streets and lean against houses to rest. Vija just had to drape herself over a "police car". It's a great little village even with its catering to its TV image.