Safe Harbour – Staithes – 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.

There’s a stillness about Staithes. Maybe it’s the harbour wall. It feels very sheltered and quiet and removed from the rough sea. I love this view and the way the beck and the bridge create an ‘S’ shape in the middle of the picture. As I was drawing it I knew that the S would be gold. I got very cold all of a sudden and had to seek emergency hot chocolate in the cafe to warm up and get the blood back into my fingers.

I’ve been told that, in bad weather, boats are moved out of the harbour and up stream, so the beck becomes the safe harbour.