Tanner's Wood

Walking into Tanner's Wood near Whitby feels like stepping back in time. The trees here have stood for centuries, their branches creating a proper canopy that blocks out most of the sky on even the brightest days. It's a working forest with a real history - the name itself speaks to its past as a source of tanning bark for the leather industry that once thrived in this corner of North Yorkshire.

What you get is straightforward woodland walking. Paths wind through dense growth, past the occasional clearing, with streams running through in places. It's not dramatic in the way coastal walks can be, but there's something grounding about it. The forest floor changes with the seasons - boggy in winter, carpeted with bluebells in spring if you time it right.

Families with younger children might find an hour enough, though older kids and serious walkers will happily spend half a day here. There's no entrance fee that we could find, and no visitor centre or facilities to speak of - just access to the woodland itself. Go early on weekends to avoid the school groups that tend to descend during term time.

If you're staying at Broadings Farm Caravan Site or Whitby Holiday Park, Tanner's Wood makes a solid morning mission before heading into Whitby itself. It's the kind of place that works better as part of a broader itinerary than a destination in its own right, but the walk itself is genuinely pleasant.