East Yorkshire is offering a different perspective on its seaside locations with a newly extended outdoor art and wayfinding trail using photoposts that also helps monitor coastal erosion.
Taking inspiration from historic landmarks, the ‘Active Beacon’ project features a series of artistic wood-turned posts, each of which displays an information plaque and QR code for more information.
Already in place at more than 25 locations, a new post has just been installed at Hessle foreshore on the banks of the Humber estuary, near Hull, under the shadow of the Humber Bridge.
Originally linked to the King Charles III, England Coast Path, and aimed at promoting the health benefits from walking, the project has created connected walking trails stretching from the dramatic cliffs overlooking Bridlington down to Spurn Point, and now the Humber Estuary itself.
As well as physical activity opportunities, the scheme also aims to boost mental wellbeing, and links to Blue Mind theory, which relates to the feeling of mindfulness and relaxation from being in, or near, water.
All the photoposts are close to the coast or the estuary, and among them are 12 providing a way marked trail between RSPB Bempton Cliffs and Sewerby, while six map a route around national nature reserve Spurn Point, a three-and-a-half-mile sandy spit rich in wildlife, known as Yorkshire’s very own Land’s End.
Along with the crafted wood turned post, each spot also has a metal cradle tailor made to hold a smart phone or tablet, with people encouraged to take photographs and upload them to social media.
Not only does the trail offer walkers the opportunity to snap some of the region’s hidden gems, but it also provides the chance to get involved in a ‘citizen-led science’ opportunity to monitor how the coast may be eroding.
The project is a joint initiative between East Riding of Yorkshire Council, Visit East Yorkshire, and The University of Hull (Energy & Environment Institute), which is linked to the global CoastSnap programme, and is helping to boost data collection about the local coastline by building a visual timeline of the shifting landscape.
For more details, and the locations of all the photoposts, which are manufactured and designed by Beverley-based Galvin Brothers, see
General tourist information on East Yorkshire as a destination is available at www.visiteastyorkshire.co.uk
