Pickering is an ancient market town and civil parish in the Ryedale district of the county of North Yorkshire, England, on the border of the North York Moors National Park. It sits at the foot of the Moors, overlooking the Vale of Pickering to the south. According to legend the town was founded by the a certain king Peredurus around 270BC; however the town as it exists today is of medieval origin. The tourist venues of Pickering Castle, the North Yorkshire Moors Railway and Beck Isle Museum have made Pickering popular with visitors in recent years.