Thirsk
Thirsk has a Viking name and derives from the word Thraesk meaning lake or fen. It is now a small market town located within the Vale of York, south of Northallerton, north east of Ripon and to the north of Easingwold. Thirsk is divided by the Cod Beck, a tributary of the River Swale which may have formed the marshy ground of Viking times. By the eighteenth century Thirsk had developed into an important coaching stop at the centre of a crossroads and was noted for its many coaching inns.
Among the old inns in Thirsk still in existence are the eighteenth century Three Tuns and Golden Fleece.Today, Thirsk is a delightful market town centred around an cobbled market place with an interesting range of shops, cafes and places to visit. The town square has traditional coaching inns, and on Mondays including Bank Holidays and Saturdays there is an excellent open air market with a wide variety of market stalls.
Thirsk is ideally situated on the south-western edge of the North Yorkshire Moors National Park., making Thirsk an excellent base for walkers who want to explore this area of North Yorkshire.