Saltburn Beach – Card

The Cleveland Way is one of the shorter national trails, beginning in Helmsley in North Yorkshire. The path takes you to the coast at Saltburn by the Sea, and then all along the coastal path to Filey Brigg. In May 2025 I ran the whole path over the course of a week. I was on my own for most of it, then joined by my best running friends at Whitby for the last couple of days. I carried a little running pack with everything I needed for the week on my back (I wasn’t camping!) and the smallest drawing kit in a pouch on my front. I stopped to draw whenever inspiration struck. I took photographs too, but mostly the paintings are based on the sketches.

It was suddenly cold when I got to the sea and I had to stop and put on all available clothes before I ran down to plant my feet on the sand. I took a photograph of my feet to show Mum that I had reached the coast. I wanted this painting to capture the emptiness and the light. It’s that first lung full of salty air.