The Old Town Below Of East Cliff Whitby Harbour Poster

The Old Town Below Of East Cliff Whitby Harbour year 2011 (Whitby) Whitby is situated on the east coast of Yorkshire facing the North Sea in a deep valley at the mouth of the River Esk. It has been a bridging point since at least mediaeval times and several bridges have spanned the river. The current bridge, built in 1908, is a swing bridge with a 75-foot (23 m) span that separates the upper and lower harbours which have a total area of around 80.1 acres (32.40 ha). The houses are built of brick or stone, often with red pantiled roofs, in narrow, steep streets, on both sides of the river. The harbour and the mouth of the River Esk are on a geological fault. On the east side the cliff is tall, 187 feet (57 m), and consists of alternating layers of shale, sandstone and clay. On the west side the cliff is much lower and has a deep capping of boulder clay over a sandstone base making it less stable and liable to slippage. Both cliffs are being eroded quite rapidly.