Flat Howe

Getting to Flat Howe from Whitby involves a proper moorland walk, and that's rather the point. This Bronze Age burial mound sits on the North York Moors, and the journey across open heathland is half the appeal. Once you reach it, you're standing on what amounts to a 4,000-year-old grave mound - a low, rounded tumulus that doesn't look like much until you realise what you're actually standing on.

It's the kind of place that rewards a bit of archaeological imagination. The mound itself is modest - you won't find dramatic stonework or reconstructed ceremonies here. What you get instead is solitude and a genuine sense of stepping into prehistory. Bronze Age folk would have travelled considerable distances to bury their dead here, which tells you something about how significant this location was to them.

The walk takes a couple of hours round trip from Whitby town, depending on pace and fitness. Come on a clear day when the moors are open and you can actually see where you're going. Winter fog turns it into a navigation exercise. History enthusiasts will find it worthwhile; casual visitors might find the windswept approach more memorable than the mound itself.

If you're staying at Broadings Farm or Whitby Holiday Park, Flat Howe makes a solid half-day outing combined with other moor walks. Pack a proper map - phone signal can be iffy up there. It's free to visit, and the nearest facilities are back in Whitby itself.