So, moving on to the second day of our Moorsbus travels last weekend, and a very easy journey. The Moorsbus from York dropped us in Helmsley where we crossed the road for a Moorsbus to Sutton Bank after only a few minutes wait. Sutton Bank lies in the south-western corner of the North York Moors, and there is one of two main visitor centres for the National Park.
A few minutes walk takes us to the edge of a cliff overlooking the Vale of York, and where on a clear day the views are spectacular. It wasn't particularly clear day, but as we walked north I was able to get this shot of Gormire Lake, with a glimpse of Whitestone Cliff, along which we had walked, on the left of the shot. It was quite a windy day, but the wind was from the west, keeping us on the cliff top rather than trying to blow us off.
Gormire Lake is a natural lowland lake that lies at the foot of Whitestone Cliff, a western escarpment of the Hambleton Hills. The lake is 1.2 miles (2 km) east of the village of Sutton-under-Whitestonecliffe. Gormire has no inflow or major outflow of water. It is thought to be fed by an underground spring and drained by a limestone channel so the water finds a way out through the base of the cliff face.
The lake was formed over 20,000 years ago by glacial erosion. When an ice sheet pushed its way between the Pennines and the North York Moors, it bulldozed the soft earth away and carved the cliffs at Whitestone and in turn the mud left over stopped the water's egress and formed the glacial lake. It is the 4th largest natural lake in Yorkshire.
Thank you all for your lovely comments and favs, they are very much appreciated.
Sutton Bank is on a busy route eastwards from Thirsk towards the east coast. The road up the escarpement is a steep zig-zag, and a frequent location for accidents. There are also footpaths down the escarpment, including a nature trail to Gormire Lake, though it is a very steep route back to the top!
Thank you Kathy - there are some lovely walks in the area, but I tend to avoid the ones that descend into the vale below, since it is such hard work to get back up again!
Ian
July 10th, 2023
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Thank you all for your lovely comments and favs, they are very much appreciated.
Sutton Bank is on a busy route eastwards from Thirsk towards the east coast. The road up the escarpement is a steep zig-zag, and a frequent location for accidents. There are also footpaths down the escarpment, including a nature trail to Gormire Lake, though it is a very steep route back to the top!
Ian
Thank you Kathy - there are some lovely walks in the area, but I tend to avoid the ones that descend into the vale below, since it is such hard work to get back up again!
Ian