Gillamoor walk

PRAYERS to the Snow Goddess answered, we drove north to the North York Moors, up to Gillamoor, and stopped. We were uncertain about conditions beyond the village, thanks to the weather, and the whys and wherefores of snow ploughs on the wilder, deeper little roads.

From Gillamoor it would almost certainly be possible to drive back down to the lowlands later on, and there was a fanciable moor just that little bit further north on foot.

First there was a descent from Surprise View on a sunken track, obviously a sledging run, now a right of way recently restored to the public. This came out way below in the valley bowl at the end Farndale and then the outward route continued with a track north west that parallels wooded escarpment.

Here we practised the energy saving routine of walking in each other's footprints. One farm had pretty brown cows and black-faced sheep; another farm brought up a chat with the farmer's wife who found us wandering and wondering how to exit the farmyard environs.

We advised more waymarks to lessen walker loitering. She said 'rather you than me' about Harland Moor and laughed that if we put up a white flag, she wouldn't be able to see it.

A back road took us through Rudland, a name most associated with the nearby Rudland Rigg. So we were surprised that Rudland the once demi-hamlet with inn and chapel and primitive coal mining was 'back on the map'. A new info-board proclaims this and there's a new bench to digest it on.

We extracted our sandwiches and ruminated on another statement on the board that when visitors arrive here on the way from Fadmoor to Bransdale 'somehow they get lost'. Nearby is Sykes House which is in Countryside Stewardship and, according to the Ryedale Natural History Society website, is species rich, plus glow-worms.

After a wood and a bridging of Harland Beck there lay Harland Moor, a flat curve at fairly low altitude and a mile to cross west to east. A wader winged away and a rabbit nearly got trodden on as it sheltered under a branch of heather.

The snow lay to a depth of six inches, a foot, sometimes knee high and more fell from the sky. The track was just visible, but I did set a compass.

At the east side of the moor the ground dips steeply into Farndale, so it was straight down through the trees to the River Dove, and then a lovely path that follows the flow south into Farndale Nature Reserve.

A sign reads 'It is forbidden to pluck or injure the daffodils, penalty £5.' Because their leaves were invisible, we chose a route to avoid crushing them but couldn't avoid the stimulating climb back to Surprise View.

Directions

1. From the inn at Gillamoor, right to pavement, track to right of church that curves left then steep downhill (signed), left to track, right to road, 100 yards.

2. Track on left (signed), skirt to left of farmyard and stay on track (one fieldgate).

3. At end of track, stile/fieldgate (waymark), cross field, stile, cross field, fieldgate into farmyard, through yard between barns and stay on track for 150 yards to stile/fieldgate (was wire fence to right).

4. Right to road. Gate into wood to path (signed).

5. Fieldgate out of saplings (waymark), 1 o'clock for 100 yards to wall corner, angle downhill to footbridge.

6. Fieldgate and right (old signpost), 100 yards. Ladderstile/fieldgate to moor (waymark), path/track in heather curves left uphill after about 100 yards and angles gently away from wall to left.

7. Cross road to track/path in heather, one o'clock downhill, cross track to stile in wire fence into young plantation (20 yards below lone pine in heather), stile, stile and cross track to continue downhill by wall at first to your left, downhill to river.

8. At bridge, right to riverside path which rises above river but stays close.

9. At fieldgate turn right before it on path uphill by trees (signed), 100 yards, gate on left to path (wall on left), footbridge to path to parking area, right to road, re-walk track to Gillamoor.

Fact file:

Distance: Five and a half miles.

Time: Three hours.

General location: North York Moors.

Start: Gillamoor, Lowna or Bransdale.

Right of way: Complete route is along public rights of way.

Date walked: Friday February 25.

Road route: From A170 via Kirkbymoorside. Or Daffodil bus or Moorsbus in season.

Car parking: Either roadside in Gillamoor or very small free car park at Lowna or free parking area/roadside in Bransdale.

Lavatories: None

Refreshments: Royal Oak Inn at Gillamoor.

Tourist & public transport information: 01751 473791.

Map: Based on OS OL26 North York Moors Western area.

Terrain: Moor, riverside and farmland.

Points of interest: Harry Mead wrote that the last coal mined at Rudland was during the General Strike of 1926.

Difficulty: Moderate in good weather.

Please observe the Country Code and park sensibly. While every effort is made to provide accurate information, walkers set out at their own risk.

Click here to view a map of the walk

Updated: 16:30 Friday, March 04, 2005