---

This morning my partner and I (that's the change for the better in my life that I mentioned) met a group of friends in the village hall car park at Hovingham next to the pub, The Malt Shovel at about 10.00am. Our friend, Pete, had sorted out a route for to-day and we set off along the Ebor Way over the little footbridge beside the ford. There's a good bakery shop there where you can get some tasty things for a packed lunch. The weather was very grey with drizzly showers, but it was OK once we got going. At the edge of the village we turned right off the Ebor Way and onto a footpath down a farm track, across the line of a dismantled railway and zig zagging across the fields for about 2.5km to Stonegrave. It's a pretty little village. We crossed the main road and just above the village we took a bridleway that climbed to the top of Caukleys Bank and continued along Caukleys Lane to West Ness about 3.5km from Stonegrave. There are lovely views from this ridge to both the north and the south. Just before we reached Ness Bridge we passed an old Methodist Chaple that had been turned into a barn and at Ness Bridge we turned left to follow the footpath beside the River Rye to Nunnington. It's a pretty reach of river and at Mill Farm the old Water Mill still has its water wheel in tact. There is a seat by the weir where it would have been nice to sit a while in better weather. As the path approaches Nunnington village there are a couple of huge mature Elm trees in the field - quite a rare sight these days after the ravages of Dutch Elm disease. We continued through the village to pick up the path beside the River Rye again for another 1.5km to High Moor Lane where we turned left onto the lane (it's just a path through the fields). We followed the path to a staggered crossing of a minor road and then up the bank for abour 1km to return to Stonegrave. From Stonegrave we took the minor road for about 2km to Cawton (there is a path across the fields for part of the way but it was all a bit muddy in the drizzly weather). From Cawton we returned to Hovingham along the Ebor Way, about 3km. It was after 3.30pm when we arrived back in Hovingham and after leaving our kit in the cars we went to the coffee shop in the travel agents by the green. It was very cosy with comfy settees and very good coffee, toasted tea cakes and wonderful cream scones. The whole route was about 16km and took us five and a half hours to complete including a couple of refreshment stops along the way.
PS I had a ride out in the car a few days later when the weather was better to take the photos.

Above:- Nunnington Hall (a National Trust property) beside the River Rye Left:- A pair of mature Elms near Nunnington Above:- Stonegrave Church Left:- Hovingham Church