Skirting the castle

THE castle at Sheriff Hutton can look romantic in moonshine, but on a grey day it loomed gaunt and unsteady, tall towers of dilapidated stone, magnets for clouds of black birds.

We turned our backs, took the street signed West End and this turned into the Foss Walk, a track that is here a mile from the River Foss, but nice, with thickets of thorns, benders of brambles and lots of little birds.

The land is flat, sometimes undulating as old ridge and furrow pasture; the route passes near a trig point on a rare hillock 250ft high. There were ash trees, some dripping with seeds, more wild flowers in bloom than is usual this late in the year, and there were many more directional arrows nailed to gates than one has come to expect. So it was nearly all good going. However, given this obvious marking up of the route it's a strange oversight that the path was in two places ploughed up.

At Cornborough Manor we saw the moat shapes, nodded to the racehorses in their posh winter coats, turned a corner and descended on a track with clear-day views towards York, but for us it was a bit misty.

Another mile, and finally we joined the River Foss, and followed the sparkling flow, a beck's worth, in a deep channel that doubles as a wildlife corridor. Then we hit the road from Strensall for exactly four brazen minutes along a dead-straight drag strip length, with wide verges for refuge.

Then we turned on to a back road 'virtually undiscovered by the public' to quote Mark W Jones in 1988 in his admirable booklet, The Foss Walk. He's still correct, there are occasionally tufts of grass on the tar, and for the half an hour there were no cars as we accelerated, paralleling the line of the river through fields of rich soil resized to prairie proportions.

At a junction we left the Foss to make its way to join the Ouse in the city of York. Our route took us to the village of West Lilling and involved a climb to 100 feet no less.

Now the castle was in full view, and we closed on the ruin, over ridge and furrow pasture, by parkland with oaks, a mile on simultaneously the Foss Walk, the Ebor Way and the Centenary Way.

Back at Sheriff Hutton there were no obvious 'fleshpots' as suggested by author Mark W Jones, instead the warm fire of the Highwayman (though the information there in the Gents was that Marilyn Monroe had six toes on each foot). And to continue the sheriff, highwayman, (no Maid Marion) theme, it was exciting to find in the bus shelter the October Newsletter from the local law - PC Ian Aconley. His ace report read like a script for The Bill, with a feudal feel: "Lampers and poachers continue to plague our area... sightings 21st, 25th, 2.45am, West Lilling... chase... white Subaru... high powered air rifles, hand lamp, no game... useful intelligence gathered."

Fact file

Distance: Six and a half miles.

Time: Three hours.

General location: Near York.

Start: Sheriff Hutton

Right of way: The complete route is along public rights of way.

Date walked: Saturday, November 8, 2003.

Road route: From York via Strensall.

Car parking: Roadside.

Lavatories: None.

Refreshments: Inn at Sheriff Hutton.

Tourist & public transport information: Helmsley TIC 01439 770173.

Map: Based on OS Explorer 300 Howardian Hills and Malton.

Terrain: Arable and pasture lowland farmland.

Points of interest: Nicholas Pevsner writes of Sheriff Hutton Castle that 'by 1618 it was in decay'. A £450,000 English Heritage grant brings hope.

Difficulty: Fairly flat, well waymarked, and fast.

Dogs: Suitable.

Weather forecast: Evening Press and recorded forecast 0891 500 418.

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

Directions

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

1. Along West End, to path at end of road (signed). Stile/fieldgate into field, stile out, stile on right and immediately left. Stile & footbridge between hedge and fieldgate.

2. Footbridge and stile, right to fenced corner (pond), left (farm to your right). Stile, footbridge and 11 o'clock across field (was not reinstated) to snickelgate (white post).

3. By hedge to right, snickelgate to path. Left to tarmac, 2 bends.

4. Before entrance to stable yard, fieldgate on left to track downhill (signed), fieldgate, track turns to field-edge grassy path.

5. Left at junction with ditch. Just before house, enter gate and head diagonally 100 yards across field to gates. Left to track, pass house, track swings right.

6. Right at staggered tracks crossroads/junction (waymarked post).

7. Over brick bridge near house and immediately left beside River Foss, sharp left around cricket pitch.

8. Left to main road (verge). First road on right (unfenced). First road on left. Swing right at Ghyll House.

9. Left in village, 50 yards, stile on right to path (signed), one o'clock across field, stile and diagonally across field aiming to left of castle. Stile on right in playing field and immediately left back into Sheriff Hutton.

Click here to view a map of the walk

Updated: 09:35 Saturday, November 15, 2003