Saltburn-by-the-Sea, North Yorkshire
This is Saltburn or Saltburn-by-the-Sea to give it its full title - a lovely old Victorian seaside resort on the North Yorkshire coast a bit north of Scarborough. I saw it in a TV play years ago and vowed to visit one day. It looked so great with its cliff lift (they don't call it a funicular), pier and huge sandy beach. It has a real Alan Bennett feel to it, homely but windswept. When we got there we'd just missed The Royal doing some filming and Heartbeat are never out of there as it passes for the 1960s without any fuss. No wonder as it's so unspoilt.
The cliff lift is the oldest remaining waterbalance lift in Britain, working its way up and down the 120ft cliff since 1884. There's something satisfyingly low-tech about all the swishing and clanking that goes on. For 60p you get to travel in the intimate little cars (maximum 15 passengers and that must be a tight squeeze) with their lovely stained glass windows. There were two old men in ours who asked wryly if we were having a good time. They seemed suprised when we said we were. With surroundings as nice as this it's easy to get by without "attractions".
On to the pier next, the most northerly surviving one in Britain, which stretches out over a spotless sandy beach.There are amusements at the cliff end but apart from that it heads out to sea with little ornament, so it's advisable to get some chips for the walk to keep yourself occupied. With the surf reportedly the best outside Cornwall there's a funny mixture of the old and the young around, although you must need a pretty thick wet suit to keep you warm. I thought nowhere was that lost in time any more, but I found 3 postcards from before the moon landing in the shop at the end of the pier. The whole place has the air of a well-kept secret and that can't possibly last, so visit now before it's too late.
Comments
Anne
Thanks for another wonderful site. I check for updates on I Like far too many times a week so it's wonderful that you've set up this as well. Wonderful wonderful stuff after a dull uninspiring day at work. I'm already planning a daytrip to Saltburn . . .
Thanks for what you do,
Love and stuff Simon James
Posted by: simon james | May 8, 2006 08:24 PM
Thanks Simon, nice of you to say so!
Posted by: Anne | May 8, 2006 11:01 PM
great site,this is what makes England/Britain great, this is one thing we are good at a sort of folorn sadness that produces writers like Alan Bennet and John Betjeman.Slightly dissapointed that the whole of Belgium was'nt included in the continental section.A country where a ultra hip chrome bar and a surgical appliance shup can exist happily as neighbours.
Posted by: gary | June 18, 2006 11:47 AM
Thanks for the comments Gary. There's still time for Belgium to make it in - what you see here is only the tip of the iceberg. Might be a bit harsh though :)
Posted by: Anne | June 18, 2006 02:42 PM
nice site, which alan bennet do you mean?
Posted by: Ellie Norris | June 19, 2006 10:28 AM
Not exactly sure why the Guardian (upon reviewing this site) said Saltburn was pickled in 1953 - it's a Victorian town : maybe 1853 perhaps. I live in Saltburn and I'm 27. The place bores me rigid.
Posted by: Blue-Rat | June 30, 2006 06:15 PM
Sorry to hear that Blue-Rat. True, it's not a bustling metropolis. Nice place to visit though!
Posted by: Anne | June 30, 2006 08:05 PM
Well that's it - these places are all very well to visit but you have to consider the people who live there. Saltburn is a very pleasant town - it's just in the middle of nowhere, with nothing much happening (although that has changed over the last few years and the surrounding towns are even worse.)
Posted by: Blue-Rat | July 4, 2006 12:58 AM
'a bit north of Scarborough' - 20 miles is more than a bit, love.
As for Saltburn being a well kept secret that can't possible last - it's 45 miles from the nearest city - so there's no reason for it to be discovered. I assume you got the postcards from the novelty shop at the beach - they don't seem to have anything like that anymore.
You didn't mention the amusements, either, or the Ship Inn, the smuggler's museum - a lot of character etc.
Posted by: Blue Rat | July 31, 2006 03:32 PM
we passed through saltburn twice last week, whilst on a camping holiday. sadly, it was raining both times, so we didn't get out of the car.
Posted by: tom | August 9, 2006 12:38 AM