A three-year archaeology project has begun to investigate the wide-ranging history of Sutton Bank, near Thirsk in North Yorkshire, home of celebrated author James Herriot.

Sutton Bank is an escarpment with magnificent views over the Vale of York. The White Horse of Kilburn is a nearby feature, cut into the chalk of the cliff face. A notorious long 1-in-4 hill with a hairpin bend takes the A170 to the bank top, where it continues along the southern edge of the North York Moors National Park, past Rievaulx Abbey to Helmsley, and thence to Pickering and Scarborough.

The Yorkshire Gliding Club has its airfield at the top of the hill. The escarpment faces the prevailing westerly wind and has been used for ridge soaring since the early 1930s. Whitbywriters and his son have flown gliders and light aircraft from the top of the Bank, and retain happy memories of the area.