Dog-friendly walks in Whitby

Seven miles of heritage-coast clifftop between Whitby and Robin Hood's Bay, with bay and beach views for most of the way. It is the classic coastal leg of the Cleveland Way, dropping you into the huddled red roofs of Bay at the far end.

Ten mildly undulating miles shadowing the River Esk from Egton Bridge to the sea at Whitby, on good paths, old toll roads and field tracks. There is a steepish dip and climb over a disused railway line near the end, and the village train makes it an easy one-way walk.

The old Whitby to Scarborough railway, 21.5 largely traffic-free miles of cinder path — the stretch from Robin Hood's Bay climbs gently through woodland to Ravenscar in about four and a half miles. Sea views come and go through the trees, and the X93 bus can carry tired legs back to the start.

A 7.7-mile circular of about three and a quarter hours, out on quiet lanes past Sneaton Castle and Newholm to the Hart Inn at Sandsend, then back along the sands and the West Cliff promenade into Whitby; easy going, but well over half of it is tarmac. Start at Whitby bus station or the Church Street car parks, and note that the 4 and X4 run to Sandsend every half hour if you want to cut it short. Sandsend and Whitby West Cliff both close their central beaches to dogs in summer, the return along the sands needs a falling tide, and the Khyber Pass climb back into town is on pavement, so plan this one on a lead with the tide table to hand.