Here are just a few of the other activities on offer in and around the area, which cater for all ages & abilities.

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Beaches and seashores 
There's nothing better than to spend a day pottering on the beach, looking in rock pools, watching the waves and listening to the seabirds and we are sure that most other people do. There is a small beach within the confines of Staithes Harbour, just a short stroll from all our cottages, which is exposed from mid to low tide. It is gently shelving with no immediate strong currents so it is safe for children to wander around on. It contains a mixture of sand, pebbles and seaweed allowing the construction of fanciful sandcastles and other edifices. If you want a larger sandy beach then Runswick Bay has one and is only 3 miles South of Staithes, it is also a picturesque village and the pub does good food. Further South, at Sandsend, there is another wide sandy beach, eminently suitable for kite flying, where you can watch the surfers, or give it a go yourselves. Whitby has a sandy beach North of the harbour.

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Cycling 
The disused Whitby to Scarborough railway is now an excellent traffic-free cycleway and bikes can be hired from a shop on the trail at Hawsker, just South of Whitby, 01947 820207. They stock a wide range of bikes including childrens’ bikes and seats. There are also many bike friendly trails through the inland woods that border the coast.

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Fishing 
Many people fish from the harbour wall at Staithes. For the more adventurous there are boat trips from Staithes (01947 840278) and Whitby, you can usually hire tackle and bait from the proprietors. The River Esk is the only river in Yorkshire to contain salmon and sea trout and permits are available to fish some stretches of it. Many children (and quite a few adults!) love to try their hands at crabbing. Crab lines are available in many of the local shops for usually little more than a pound and can provide hours of inexpensive seaside fun. Tip: smokey bacon scraps work very well!

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Surfing 
Staithes, Saltburn and nearby Sandsend are said to be the best surfing spots in the country, we even get surfers from Cornwall travelling to Staithes when they hear that the surf is right. Probably not for the faint-hearted, Staithes is said to provide some of the most "extreme" conditions in the country at times.

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Geology and industrial history 
The sea cliffs present a wide range of geological formations from which many different materials have been mined. Remains of an ironstone mining operation can be seen at Port Mulgrave, a mile South of Staithes along the cliff tops. To the North of Staithes, at Skinningrove, there is the Tom Leonard Mining Museum where you can take a trip around an old iron mine and gain a fascinating insight into the iron mining industry that used to be so prominent around this area (01287 642877). Evidence of alum mining can be seen at Sandsend. Cowbar Nab at Staithes, the cliff on the North side of the harbour, shows Jurassic period strata and fossils can be simply picked up off the shore at low tide. The harbour at Whitby is on a fault line which can be appreciated in the rock formations of the East and West cliffs.