Tag Archives: Cleveland Hills

A Christmas Walk: With Ghosts on Baysdale Moor

Posted on December 16, 2014 by

I AM wary of the North York Moors because they are more than a little bit sinister. They are wild and empty, peppered with the scratchings of forgotten people, laced with legends, and punctuated with the stumps of ancient crosses … Continue reading →

Posted in Archaeology, Captain James Cook, Cleveland Way, Death, Environment, Footpaths, Ghosts, Hiking, History, Hunting, Industrial archaeology, Legends, Mountains, Politics, Ranting, Ruins, Teesside, Walking, Weather | Tagged , , , , | 42 Comments

Restless at North Gare

Posted on October 28, 2014 by

I???VE been drawn to the sea because it???s the time of year when things migrate. The seasons change and life adapts. Birds fly south and animals hoard food for winter. People tune into their primeval instincts and gather stuff for … Continue reading →

Posted in Environment, History, Industrial archaeology, Life, Rivers, South Gare, Teesside | Tagged , , | 21 Comments

A Cook’s Tour of the Cleveland Hills

Posted on October 22, 2014 by

CAPTAIN James Cook is one of Britain’s most celebrated maritime heroes. Born to lowly farming folk in the Teesside village of Marton, his destiny lay not in farming ??? or shopkeeping, to which he was briefly apprenticed ??? but as … Continue reading →

Posted in Camping, Captain James Cook, Cleveland Way, Climbing, Death, Footpaths, Hiking, History, Mountains, Railway goods wagons, Railways, Teesside, Vikings, Walking, Weather | Tagged , , , , | 32 Comments

South Gare in the Eye of the Beholder

Posted on October 14, 2014 by

SOMETIMES ugly landscapes can be inspiring. I was going to say beautiful, but I hesitated and typed inspiring instead. I might reconsider before the end of the post because South Gare is a landscape that should be protected. It???s one … Continue reading →

Posted in Childhood, Environment, Food, History, Industrial archaeology, Life, Politics, Ranting, Rivers, Ruins, Second World War, South Gare, Teesside, Traditions, Walking | Tagged , | 32 Comments

In Between One England and Another

Posted on August 21, 2014 by

I’M in between mountains at the moment. And I’m in between jobs. I’m in between a lot of stuff. If I wrote a book I’d call it The Inbetweener but I’d probably get sued. Today I’m going for a walk … Continue reading →

Posted in Cleveland Way, Climbing, Footpaths, Great North Road, Hiking, Jargon, Life, Mountains, Ranting, Redundancy, Ruins, Teesdale, Unemployment, Walking | Tagged , , , , , | 31 Comments

Wild Winds and the Wain Stones

Posted on February 13, 2014 by

FOR many years I lived under the misguided impression that Ewan MacColl???s iconic mountain song The Manchester Rambler included a mention of the Wain Stones in the Cleveland Hills. Only recently did I discover there is another set of Wain … Continue reading →

Posted in Archaeology, Bronze Age, Cleveland Way, Climbing, Cup and ring carvings, Environment, Ewan MacColl, Footpaths, Hiking, History, Legends, Mountains, Teesside, Vikings, Walking | Tagged , , , , | 35 Comments