Danby

Danby is a pleasant village spread along the north bank of the Esk, with its neighbour Ainthorpe just across the river. It is the natural first stop for anyone new to the valley thanks to The Moors National Park Centre, a mile east of the village, with exhibitions, a café, gardens, riverside walks and a busy programme of events.

To the south, up Danby Dale, stands Danby Castle, a fortified 14th-century manor house that was once home to Catherine Parr, the last wife of Henry VIII, before her royal marriage. It is still a working farm and the seat of the Danby Court Leet, one of the last surviving manorial courts in England. Nearby, Duck Bridge is a medieval packhorse bridge across the Esk.

Above the village to the north-east, Danby Beacon (299 metres) was one of a chain of fire beacons and later an early radar station. A replica beacon marks the summit, and on a clear day you can see the coast at Whitby and across the Tees to the Cleveland Hills.

Danby has a village shop, a pub (the Duke of Wellington), a Methodist chapel and the parish church of St Hilda, which stands a mile or so up the dale, well away from the village. The station is in the village itself.