Yorkshire Walks

Crossing the hill top toward Maylo Cross

Today my wife and I were invited to a friend's wedding in Wakefield, so we had to miss today's walk. The first Saturday in the month is my regular date for a walk with a group of friends, so Pete led a walk for the group from the Hole-of-Horcum on the Pickering to Whitby road at map ref. SE 852937. They met at our usual time of about 10.30am and set off on the path round the edge of the wood and across the hill top to Maylo Cross at map ref. SE 867949. From the cross they headed south down the side of the plantation to pass the little farm at Newgate Foot. Then with Blakey Topping behind them the group walked across an area of moorland to map ref. SE 882921. Here they doubled back on a path to the foot of the wooded bank at map ref. SE 877922. The start of the path up the bank is quite hard to find. You have to look out for the gate into the woodland above you across the stream and trace the line of the path back to find where to cross the stream (well I do anyway - Pete is a very experience walker and competitive orienteer so I expect he had no trouble at all!)

Maylo Cross

'Landmark' gate into the woods at map ref. SE 877922 above Crosscliff Beck

Steep path up the bank through the plantation

Steep path up the bank through the plantation

Old stone gate posts at the top of the bank

They turned right off the track at this point to follow a path through the heather to the Bridestones. These are large blocks of soft sandstone weathered into odd shapes by the windblown sand. The stones are on the two ridges either side of a little valley.

Once through the little gate there is a nice, but steep path up through the plantation to the top of the bank at map ref. SE 874923. Here they crossed the stony track and cut through a short stretch of woodland to join the track heading along the outside of the plantation until they reached map ref. SE 876914.

View point at the Bridestones

Footpath across the fields from Mount Pleasant to the A169

Pasture land between Warren Farm and the Hole-of-Horcum

Starting the descent into the Hole-of-Horcum

They crossed the road and took the track to Warren Farm. Just before the farm they took the path across the fields to the woods on the edge of the Hole-of-Horcum at map ref. SE 841920. From here there is a lovely path down through the woods into the Hole-of-Horcum.

The group took the path down the western ridge and dropped down into Staindale at map ref. SE 872905. They joined the track at Low Staindale farm and followed the farm access road for just over 1km to Mount Pleasant at map ref. SE 855911. Here they left the road and followed the path over the fields to the main road (A 169) at map ref. SE 850908.

The Hole-of-Horcum

Looking to Low Horcum farm

Path through the bottom of the Hole-of-Horcum

Climbing out of the Hole-of-Horcum to the A169

They got back just before a quarter to four in the evening sunshine. The whole route had been about 17km and had taken five and a quarter hours to walk including their lunch breaks. All the photo's of this walk are Pete's and he retains the copyright.

They followed the path through the Hole-of-Horcum to the hairpin bend on the main road at map ref. SE 849940 and followed the road the few hundred metres back to the car park.

Back at the Hole-of-Horcum car park