Hayburn Wyke

Hayburn Wyke is a coastal site of special scientific interest on the North Sea coast north of Scarborough. It lies within the North Yorkshire Moors National Park, split between the parishes of Cloughton and Staintondale. The name comes from Old English and Old Norse words meaning a hunting enclosure by a stream and a sea inlet. A secluded bay is reached by a short but steep path from the cliff top. The bay has a pebbly beach backed by wooded cliffs and two waterfalls flowing down to the shore. The site is recognised for its geological and biological importance. Rock pools on the beach contain many kinds of aquatic creatures. The woodland, now owned by the National Trust, once had oak, ash and beech trees, many lost in the Second World War but now being restored. The cliffs date from the Middle Jurassic period and hold a thick layer of boulder clay. The waterfalls have uncovered a fossil-rich plant bed with about sixty species, mostly cycads. At the cliff top stands the Hayburn Wyke Inn, which provides food and overnight stays. The site can be reached along the Cleveland Way coastal path or the Cinder Track, a former railway now used for walking and cycling. Road access leads to the inn, and until 1965 the bay had its own railway station. The mix of woodland, waterfalls and fossils makes it a place where geology and wildlife meet.