George Wilkinson blows hot and cold as he sets out on part of the Cleveland Way
BASKED in Sunday sunshine, Cold Kirby hardly lives up to its name. Way off east a still clarity lies in Ryedale, out of range but an indication of my next few hours, hot on the tops and cold in the bottoms.
First we sample the Cleveland Way, wide, straight and open. To the left are the twin mid-distance mounds of Hawnby and Easterside Hills, five degrees either side of the Bilsdale mast, one grassy pale, the other heather and dark. Newgate Bank looks its steepest from this angle. A gap reveals the Cleveland Hills and the other side of Ryedale are the moors. Closer are today's side valleys. And the yellowhammers seem walker tolerant.
'Caution. Adders on the Bank Side' reads the sign by the temptation of a cosy round-the-corner gully. Coal tits are typically timid. I descend into the chilled straight and narrow of Flassen Dale, where the valley sides are steepened by tall conifers so the sun can find few of yesterday's frozen bootprints.
Flassen Dale joins Nettle Dale, with its pretty stream and stepping stones, and then we leave the busy Cleveland Way for quiet on the tops again where you'll find that our pub, The Hare at Scawton, is a half-mile's dash along the Tarmac. I took a round-about route with crumbling crags, Waterfall Gill, and the bonus of old, knarled and thorny scrub.
As the thorn thins out you can see over the Byland, but more pertinent, an official looking sign directs to the 'The Hare Inn, Scawton'. This footpath is behind the houses, and is a linear rubbish tip, everything from Christmas trees to tyres. Hardly a red carpet to The Hare which is walker-friendly. Their food is good, so book at weekends, and they have a pool room if you're muddy. Crisps and beer at an outside table did for me with only a mile and a half and one valley to go.
Scawton's frontage is by contrast most appealing, with St Mary's, a medieval church as 'genuine as one can find' to quote Pevsner, and one of those colourful corrugated iron village halls. Actually there are two valleys to do.
The first, which won't affect your legs, is notable for its Wolds dry valley look. You can see the temples on Rievaulx Terrace, then we weave in and out of the gash of Flassen Dale again.
Our last length of top was the only noisy one with planes above the glider club and motorbikes awakened from hibernation.
DIRECTIONS
When in doubt look at the map. Check your position at each point. Keep straight on unless otherwise directed.
1 Downhill through village, right fork at green and immediately grassy track down dip on left (signed Cleveland Way), path swings right and left through little valley, up slope, left to track by barns.
2 Left at T-junction at valley bottom to good track, right at track T- junction.
3 At right-hand bend, gate on left (signed) to stepping stones, 10 yards (leave Cleveland Way here), right to track, 5 yards, grassy track at 11 o'clock up side of valley (not fieldgate ahead).
4 Left to road, 200 yards, footpath on right into wood (signed), downhill, right on smooth tarmac drive, uphill.
5 Stile/fieldgate on right at top of hill into field, fieldgate into scrub, path.
6At bottom of valley at tracks/paths junction (short post, waymarked on reverse), straight on for 25 yards and uphill, right fork to steep path up, 100 yards, exit at wooden power pole and straight on to grassy track through scrub.
7 Fieldgate in left-hand corner of field by barn at back of village, left to path, right to road.
8 Stile by phone box, stile, 50 yards, fieldgate on left and straight on, fieldgate (or stile by wood edge), downhill, loop round end of wood, track uphill, stile/fieldgate and left (3 stiles).
9 Stile into wood and left downhill, left to track in valley bottom, 25 yards, path on right uphill (felled area) angles right then over track near top, 25 yards, stile at wood edge to field-edge track, joins track to Cold Kirby.
FACT FILE
Distance: Five miles.
Time: Three hours.
Start: Cold Kirby
Right of Way: The complete route is along public rights of way.
Date walked: Sunday, February 20, 2000.
Road Route: One and a half miles north-east of Sutton Bank Visitor Centre.
Car Parking: Wide verge at western edge of village, or roadside in village.
Lavatories: None.
Refreshments: The Hare Inn at Scawton.
Tourist & Public Transport Information: Sutton Bank Visitor Centre Tel 01845 597426.
Map: Based on OS Outdoor Leisure 26, North York Moors western area.
Terrain: Flat tops and sharp valleys.
Footwear: Walking boots.
Points of interest: Open views and wooded valleys.
Difficulty: Moderate.
Dogs: Suitable for dogs but keep on leads or under close control.
Weather Forecast: Evening Press and recorded forecast 0891 500 418
Please observe the Country Code and park sensibly. Every effort is made to provide accurate information, but walkers set out at their own risk.
PICTURE:The wooded track out of Nettle Dale
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