Yorkshire

The North York Moors National Park was created in 1952 and is one of the finest landscapes in Britain. It covers 554 square miles and is one of the largest areas of heather mooreland in the United Kingdom. It has miles of stunning heather, towering sea cliffs, secluded beaches and grassy dales, all of which give it a character all of its own. There are over 1,400 miles of footpaths and rights of way available for walkers. But its not an empty area. 25,000 people live and work there.

Geography
The North York Moors has cool summers and relatively mild winters. As in most parts of Britain, weather conditions vary from day to day as well as from season to season. The winds are predominately westerly bringing with them unsettled and windy weather, particularly in winter. The North York Moors are drained by two river systems. The north is drained by the River Esk and its tributaries, which meets the North Sea at Whitby. The south is drained by the River Derwent which eventually joins up with the River Ouse at Barmby on the Marsh. The rocks of the North York Moors were mostly laid down in the tropical seas of the Jurassic period, 205 to 142 million years ago. Rock types vary from shales to sandstones and limestones derived from coral. These marine and delta deposited rocks are superbly exposed on the Yorkshire coast from Staithes to Filey. About 30 million years ago, the land was raised and tilted towards the south by earth movements. The oldest rocks, the bands of shales and ironstones form the northern scarp of the moors and Cleveland Hills. The middle Jurassic sandstones form the high moors and the youngest layers of limestone form the tabular hills. During the last 2 million years, the Ice ages which ended about 20,000 years ago cut u shaped valleys through the rocks and formed a vast lake in the area around Pickering. Eventually the water cut through and drained the lake, leaving the Kirkham gorge.

Economy
The main factors in the economy of the North York Moors are now tourism and agriculture. Agriculture was the basis of the economy for thousands of years and generations of farmers have shaped the landscape of the area which attracts millions of visitors every year. The main agricultural practice was sheep and the wool that was produced in medieval times was crucial to the prosperity of the region and England generally. Today, sheep and cattle remain the prime source of farm income although making a living from hill farming has become very difficult. Grouse shooting on the heather moors provides an additional source of income. Tourism has become a dominant factor in the local economy and many farms and local pubs provide bed and breakfast and self catering. Camp sites and caravan sites can be found across the region.

History
Early peoples settle in the area about 10,000 years ago and were hunter gatherers using stone tools. Around 7,000 years ago the North Sea cut Britain off from Europe and the early farmers cleared the trees from what are now the moors. These peoples grew crops, kept domesticated animals and buried their dead in the long low burial mounds that can be found in the region. 4,000 years ago a different people moved into the area. These folk had better tools made of Bronze and they finally cleared the tree cover of the original forest. The land exposed to the elements lost its nutrients and over time became the moor land we have today. These folk buried their dead in round burial mounds and about 3,000 of these have been discovered. In the iron age (600 BC) the politics of the region caused people to build hill forts at Rudston Scar and at Boltby Scar. In AD 71 the Romans established a fort at Malton and from here reads radiated out to their other settlements at Pickering, Cawthorn, Lease Rigg and Filey. When the Romans left, the British Kingdoms of the area were gradually conquered by the Anglo Saxon Kingdom of Northumbria which dominated the north of Britain till it fell to the Danes in the ninth century.

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