Yorkshire Walks

Duck Pond at the car park in Thornton-le-Dale

From the car park we set off east along the main road A170 for about 150m to the bridge over Danby Beck. Here we turned left off the main road to follow the footpath along the bank of the beck.

This morning at about 10.30, a group of nine of us met in the large car park at Thornton-le-Dale, about 3km east of Pickering for our usual monthly walk together.

Footpath by Danby Beck in Thornton-le-Dale

Mill Race on Danby Beck at Thronton-le-Dale

We took the footpath around the eastern side of the mill and followed the path along the eastern bank of Danby Beck for almost a kilometer to a farm at Ellerburn.

After about 200m we came to a minor road at map ref. SE837832. At the road we turned left to walk along the road heading north for about 250m to the mill, now rather nice flats.

Path by Danby Beck leaving Thornton-le-Dale

Path by Danby Beck near Ellerburn

We crossed the road and took the path straight ahead down the side of the churchyard.

The path led us through the farm to a road at map ref. SE841841.

The church at Ellerburn

Climbing up through the woods from Ellerburn

We joined the road about 750m before the toll booth and at the road we turned left away from the toll booth and walked along the road for about 250m to the junction with the road from Thornton-le-Dale.

We followed the path up Kirkdale Slack to the woods at map ref. SE841847. We continued along the path through the woods for about 350m to a road at map ref. SE843850. This road is the start of the Dalby Forest Drive.

Crossing the fields towards Howl Dale

Dropping down into Howl Dale

Here we turned left to follow a path across the fields for about 800m to Howl Dale. We walked down the steep slope through the woods to the path running along the bottom of Howl Dale. We walked down Howl dale for about 150m to map ref. SE828849. Here we turned right to climb up the side of the valley and across the fields to a little wood at map ref. SE825851.

At the junction we turned left again to follow the road for about 500m back towards Thornton-le-Dale to map ref. SE838846. Here we turned right off the road to follow a farm access road for about 200m to map ref. SE837847.

Climbing out of the other side of Howl Dale

Our lunch stop in a wood between Howl Dale and the A169

Entering Little Park Woods

After our break we continued across the A169 Pickering to Whitby road and across a field to the edge of Little Park Wood at map ref. SE822857.

The weather was quite pleasant and sunny so we stopped in the corner of the wood for a coffee break with a nice view across the snowy fields and woods.

Entering Little Park Woods

Path through Little Park woods

The path took us round the edge of the woods above Pickering Beck and the North York Moors Railway for about 2km to map ref.SE803851 where the path turned left (south) across the field to take us into Pickering.

About 150m into the wood we turned left and followed the path out into the fields.

Leaving Little Park Woods

Alleyway through the housing estate on the edge of Pickering

We walked down the main road for a few hundred metres towards the centre of Pickering and at map ref. SE799839 we turned left off the main road to walk along Ruffa Lane

The path continued in a straight line along a series of alleyways cutting through the housing estate to emerge onto the main road, A170, at map ref. SE801843.

Walking along Ruffa Lane leaving Pickering

Walking along Ruffa Lane

Just into the wood we sat on a bank for another break in the sunshine with a view out through the trees across the Vale of Pickering to the northern edge of the Yorkshire Wolds.

After about a kilometer we reached the edge of the town. We continued along the lane between the fields to a stile straight ahead onto a path down the edge of a field to the wood at the bottom of Howl Dale at map ref. SE816836.

Our second lunch stop in Howl Dale

Crossing the fields near Thronton-le-Dale

Ever since our break the sky had been darkening and as we crossed the fields the snow started and we were white over by the time we reached the main road.

After our break we continued along the path past Hagg House and up through a small wood to follow a path across the fields back to the A170 on the edge of Thornton-le-Dale.

Snow overtook us just as we neared Thornton-le-Dale

Snow overtook us just as we neared Thornton-le-Dale

Most of our group stopped in Thornton-le-Dale for a coffee but we had to get back home to meet our daughter and family as we were baby sitting the grand children over night tonight.

But then it stopped as suddenly as it had started and we made our way back to the car park in Thornton-le-Dale. The whole walk had been about 13km and had taken us four and a quarter hours to walk including our breaks.

Walking back into Thornton-le-Dale