Inspiration & ideas
North York Moors & Coast
Salt of the earth - and footpaths
Are you worth your salt? A ‘salt of the earth’ character or do you ‘take things with a pinch of salt’? Read on to find out why we use those expressions…
Salt has had a huge impact on our diets, language and even the landscape. The Yorkshire Dales and North York Moors are both criss-crossed by ancient paths and pannier-ways, once used to transport salt from the Yorkshire and Cumbrian coast.
Salt’s been used for thousands of years. A 6000 year-old Neolithic saltworks was recently found near Whitby.…
Tracing the past in Robin Hoods Bay
Why are we still so fascinated by stories of smugglers? Maybe it's the secrecy, the tax dodging tactics or simply a childlike desire to play hide-and-seek. In Robin Hood's Bay on the Yorkshire coast on a misty day, you can sense the ghosts of the past, imagining a fleeting glimpse of a smuggler disappearing round a dark corner.
Robin Hood's Bay was said to be the busiest smuggling village on the east coast in the 18th century. A bale of silk could supposedly pass from the bottom of the village t…