The day we visited Goathland was a very exciting day for us. We’d planned to go a few days beforehand, but once we knew our new “corporate” t-shirts were on the way, we decided to hang on so that we could “showcase” our latest additions.
To celebrate the occasion, there’s a question at the end of this blog post (and on the video) for you to answer. Then one reply will be chosen at random by Alphabet Adventurer Rufus (we might get him a bandana too), and the “winner” will also receive a t-shirt.
Goathland is a village in the North York Moors, in the district of Scarborough. This sleepy location was brought to life and renamed Aidensfield in Heartbeat.
Despite the television series ending in around 2010, fans of the show still flock there throughout the year. But that isn’t all it’s famous for. The railway station was also the setting for Hogsmeade Station in the Harry Potter films.
We visited Goathland on a gloriously sunny day when it wasn’t too hot and it wasn’t too cool, and we were greeted by hordes of free-roaming sheep – that’s one way for a council to save money on grass-cutting!
We parked in the main visitors’ car park, which cost us £3 for the whole day. There was a food festival happening in the village at the same time but, while it was still fairly busy, there was plenty of room for parking. Apparently there’s an overflow car park in a field next to the car park, but we didn’t notice that.
Our first stop was a steep climb down to the railway station and the North York Moors Railway (NYMR). From this station you can visit the villages of Pickering, Levisham, Newtondale and Grosmont, and the coastal town of Whitby.
Events on the railway still to happen this year include the annual steam gala, when a hundred years of the RAF will also be celebrated, a classic vehicle display in association with the East Yorkshire Thoroughbred Car Club, and Railway in Wartime.
On the day we visited, we took a short train ride to nearby Grosmont, pulled by one of the diesel locomotives. Our train was also the venue for a wedding, and we were able to watch the pictures being taken at Grosmont Station.
Still to come in 2018 are the Halloween and Santa specials. Oh yes, and for £3, we could take Rufus on the train too.
Ironstone was discovered near Grosmont in the 1830s. At the same time, George Stephenson’s original railway was being built between Pickering and Whitby. Walkers may take the 4-mile Rail Trail to Goathland via Beck Hole. This trail follows the path of the original railway.
Grosmont is home to the NYMR engine sheds, but we only had time to wander down and have a quick look at the River Esk before boarding our (wedding) train (do you see what I did there?) back to Goathland.
From Goathland Station we walked nearly 2 miles via an ice cream shop to Mallyan Spout Waterfall. It took us just over 45 minutes to get there – and the ice cream was lovely. We were at the tail-end of a very hot and dry long summer and so we didn’t expect to see much water in the waterfall.
The terrain is very precarious and a recent landslip meant the footpath wasn’t open to the public beyond the Spout. Rufus and Ian both braved the rocky path and had a good view of North Yorkshire’s tallest waterfall. We took some time to rest before heading back to the car park.
Other places of interest that we didn’t have time to visit include St Mary’s Church, where the woodwork has little mice carved into it by Mouseman Robert Thompson, and Wheeldale Roman Road.
In all, at both Grosmont and Goathland, we walked just over 4 miles, more than 18,500 steps, and we burnt around 900 calories.
Question
What was the name of the character Nick Berry played in Heartbeat?
Please “like” our Facebook page (if you haven’t already) and then look for the Facebook post ‘G’ is for … Goathland Question. Write your answer in the replies before midnight BST on 28 September 2018. The winner, chosen at random by Rufus, will win their very own alphabet adventurer t-shirt.
(IMPORTANT: COMPETITION SITES – PLEASE DO NOT POST THE ANSWER, BUT FEEL FREE TO POST THE LINK. THANK YOU.)
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the alphabet adventurers 
FAbulous You-tube! I’m really enjoying your visits to places on my list! Thank you. Excellent photos yet again and now Ian must add mountaineering to his list of accomplishments!
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