Whilst on the train between Nunthorpe and Great Ayton, look out for the striking views of Roseberry Topping which, 1056 feet high, towers over the landscape. Scandinavian settlers called it "Othenesberg", meaning Odin's Hill. The unique shape is due to a landslip, as a direct result of the extraction of minerals. It was also used as a beacon hill, where a fire would be lit to warn of invasion. Views of Middlesbrough to the North-West and the surrounding moorland can be appreciated after walking to the top.

Dating back to the Middle Ages, Great Ayton was a centre of industrial activity, such as linen-making, tanning and brewing, long before the Industrial Revolution, when the mining of whinstone (a hard igneous rock used in road-making), ironstone, alum and jet came to predominate. These latter activities were serviced by the Esk Valley Railway.  Nowadays most of Great Ayton's residents commute to work in Middlesbrough, many of them using the train. The village is also a good base for exploring the nearby North Yorkshire Moors.

Captain Cook Schoolroom Museum

101 High Street, Great Ayton, North Yorkshire TS9 6NB
James Cook, the world's most famous navigator and explorer, spent his boyhood in this village, attending the Postgate School here. That building now houses the Captain Cook Schoolroom Museum. The cottage – probably built by his father – in which he lived was dismantled in 1934 and now stands in Fitzroy Park, Melbourne, Australia.  In its place is an obelisk built of stone taken from Point Hicks in that country. A monument to James Cook has been erected high above on Easby Moor. Each year, on or near his birthday (27th October), there is a Captain Cook Day, when local children race model boats in the river.
Find out more about the Captain Cook Schoolroom Museum

Stokesley Show

Held on the Saturday following the third Thursday in September each year since 1859. www.stokesleyshow.co.uk

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