Hawnby walk

HAPPY New Year walkers, and a new year that, barring mishap, will see the Countryside and Rights of Way Act operational in our zone. So, in a month of otherwise idleness, I've been investigating a big open access area near Hawnby for a bit of Right to Roam practice.

The lie of the land at Hawnby is outlined on an Inland Revenue site, and this time I made more progress with my further inquiries. You've paid your money, so take a chance, it's a big territory involved, the Hills of Hawnby and Easterside, and Hawnby and Wetherhouse Moors.

We had our little exploration one bright day that started with a bit of drizzle and a lot of shotgun fire, and headed for the tracks. That's the trick, keep out of the woods and fields and search out the tracks.

First though a dip across today's valley, from the moor, down through birch, the squelch of boggy bits, a first crossing of Ladhill Beck and then up through bilberries and a rock field. The rest is good going.

Now the valley, Ladhill Gill, is laid out, heading north and very lovely it is, the line of the beck picked out with trees and later with tiny fields; the rest is rough grass turning to heather with altitude. And at the heather, pure and tended, we entered the open access area, although there was no sign to tell us.

Another half mile, and with an eye on the weather, and tiny twinges in rusty legs, we took a convenient track that arced down to cross the valley to fords of flat sandstone.

A sandwich stop bought some time for a look up the rest of the valley for another day, plus I tried a swig from the hip flask that my navigator's mother inexplicably bought me; don't worry, this won't become a habit, and said navigator was and is sober.

A rook's wing was snagged in the black burnt heather, pigeons flickered against the dark of winter trees, and there were a few ruins, a valley abandoned to the birds, the grouse. Moles had made a hundred fresh dark hills in the corner of a little intake pasture, above ground our boot crunched puddles skinned with ice in grey and clear contour patterns.

But the main shapes as you come down off Hawnby Moor are the very curvaceous ones of Hawnby Hill and Easterside Hill, the former was silhouetted by the low sun, and these twins are a presence for much of the route.

Directions

When in doubt look at the map. Check your position at each point. Keep straight on unless otherwise directed.

1. Track near wall from parking area, fieldgate into farmyard (waymark), track between house and barns, left after barn (waymark), 100 yards over grass, right at wall corner, 50 yards downhill, gate, 100 yards downhill through trees to footbridge.

2. Path uphill.

3. Left to clear grassy track, 200 yards, right fork on track uphill.

4. Sheepgate in wall to track over moor,

5. Track picks up wall to right, 50 yards to where sheep pens and fieldgate on right and a junction, here left to track that crosses moor then angles northward and down. Ignore all left turns the first of which heads for a wall 100 yards away. Keep out of fields.

6. Ford, 100 yards on track with stream to left, ford, 11 o'clock for 100 yards up to sheepgate in wire fence (waymark), track 200 yards uphill through heather by wall to left, track continues uphill from wall corner, ignore right fork.

7. Merge with track from right.

Fact file:

Distance: Four miles

Time: Two hours.

General location: Western edge of North York Moors National Park.

Start: Moorgate, gate/cattle grid. GR 539917.

Right of way: The route is along public rights of way and in open access land.

Date walked: December 29, 2004.

Road route: On Hawnby to Osmotherley road a mile north of Hawnby.

Car parking: On flat grass area at Moorgate.

Lavatories: None.

Refreshments: The Hawnby Hotel and a teashop/PO in Hawnby.

Tourist & public transport information: Helmsley TIC 01439 770173.

Map: Based on OS Explorer OL26 North York Moors Western Area.

Terrain: Mostly moorland.

Points of interest: Open access area.

Difficulty: Maximum altitude 900 feet.

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: 09:00 Saturday, January 08, 2005