Lil

Perhaps he was writing Lucy and Mina's adventures in his head while he waited for the swinging arms of the bridge to come slowly, inchingly, together once more. It seems odd to think I'm standing here watching the same scene as so many people before me. A very distinctly Whitby activity that's been repeated over and over again for hundreds and hundreds of years. And then the boat is through.

The assembled crowd is released to go on their way and the spell is broken. Crossing at last, we find ourselves in what many think of as the old part of Whitby, the cliff where locals continued to live and work and ply their trade whilst the wealthy Victorian tourists and their upmarket lodging houses rapidly spread over the west cliff.

The assembled crowd is released to go on their way and the spell is broken. Crossing at last, we find ourselves in what many think of as the old part of Whitby, the cliff where locals continued to live and work and ply their trade whilst the wealthy Victorian tourists and their upmarket lodging houses rapidly spread over the west cliff.

The streets here are narrow and run warren-like down to the water in the old pier on one side and up to the base of the cliff and the abbey steps on the other. Shops, cafes, pubs, houses and museums are crammed cheek by jowl into what's actually quite a small space at the foot of the East Cliff.

The streets here are narrow and run warren-like down to the water in the old pier on one side and up to the base of the cliff and the abbey steps on the other. Shops, cafes, pubs, houses and museums are crammed cheek by jowl into what's actually quite a small space at the foot of the East Cliff.

But you could easily lose hours, even days, exploring all the nooks and crannies and alleys, not to mention the fascinating array of shops. Their vibrant and eclectic scents and window displays doing an excellent job of distracting me from my task. But I pull my attention back to the map and Mina's journey.

But you could easily lose hours, even days, exploring all the nooks and crannies and alleys, not to mention the fascinating array of shops. Their vibrant and eclectic scents and window displays doing an excellent job of distracting me from my task. But I pull my attention back to the map and Mina's journey.

She doesn't describe the route she took to reach the abbey steps, but the most direct way would either be along Church Street with its many jet shops, or the narrower Sandgate. Either route would have taken our heroine past the market square and old town hall, where we must pause to meet another of Whitby's ghosts.

She doesn't describe the route she took to reach the abbey steps, but the most direct way would either be along Church Street with its many jet shops, or the narrower Sandgate. Either route would have taken our heroine past the market square and old town hall, where we must pause to meet another of Whitby's ghosts.

Putting the bustling market square behind us, it's time to head back into the pages of Dracula. We walk along Church Street in the direction of the famous 199 Steps,

Putting the bustling market square behind us, it's time to head back into the pages of Dracula. We walk along Church Street in the direction of the famous 199 Steps,

But before we begin our climb to catch up with Mina on her quest to rescue Lucy, we must take a short detour to Tate Hill Sands and a different chapter of Dracula in which Stoker's story weaves together real-life events with his own imagination and a healthy dollop of local folklore.

But before we begin our climb to catch up with Mina on her quest to rescue Lucy, we must take a short detour to Tate Hill Sands and a different chapter of Dracula in which Stoker's story weaves together real-life events with his own imagination and a healthy dollop of local folklore.

Nearing the end of Church Street, the cobbled road veers to the right and begins to slope upwards as it begins the ascent up East Cliff. But we carry on straight ahead, squeezing down a narrow gaff between a pub called the Broad Inn and the Whitby Jet Heritage Centre, emerging at the top of a short flight of stone steps that take us down onto Tate Hill Pier.

Nearing the end of Church Street, the cobbled road veers to the right and begins to slope upwards as it begins the ascent up East Cliff. But we carry on straight ahead, squeezing down a narrow gaff between a pub called the Broad Inn and the Whitby Jet Heritage Centre, emerging at the top of a short flight of stone steps that take us down onto Tate Hill Pier.

This pier is much shorter and plainer than the newer East and West Piers, a nod to its much older and more humble beginnings.

This pier is much shorter and plainer than the newer East and West Piers, a nod to its much older and more humble beginnings.

There are no wrought iron lamps, railings or lighthouses here, just a broad, sturdy stone pier jutting out into the harbour, a pile of lobster pots at one end and a small sandy beach known as Collier's Hope nestled in the elbow-like crook where it joins the base of East Cliff. The name Collier's Hope hails from the days when coal-carrying vessels known as Colliers would offload their cargo here.

There are no wrought iron lamps, railings or lighthouses here, just a broad, sturdy stone pier jutting out into the harbour, a pile of lobster pots at one end and a small sandy beach known as Collier's Hope nestled in the elbow-like crook where it joins the base of East Cliff. The name Collier's Hope hails from the days when coal-carrying vessels known as Colliers would offload their cargo here.

but it's also served as a safe haven for many a ship seeking refuge from raging storms over the centuries, including one that made it from the front page of the Whitby Gazette newspaper straight into the pages of Dracula, the Dimitri of Narva, or, as Bram Stoker calls it in his novel, the Dimita of Varna.