Yorkshire Walks

Today we met some friends in the Forestry Commission car park at the top of Newgate Bank, map ref. SE564888, overlooking Bilsdale near Helmsley for our usual monthly walk. The weather was damp and misty but the forecast promised that it would improve as the day went on.

Track through the plantation towards the open moor

Pink flowers and green buds on the larch

From the parking area near the view point platform we walked back to the car park entrance off the B1257. At the car park entrance we walked away from the road, through a gate to follow a track through the plantation to Rievaulx Moor.

We continued along the track around the edge of the moor for about 2.5km from the car park to map ref. SE580905. Here we took a left fork off the main track through a gate way with no gate.

Path down the bank to Roppa Wood

Track around the edge of Roppa Wood

Track around the edge of Rievaulx Moor

Path down the bank to Roppa Wood

We followed the muddy path down the steep bank through a plantation to the corner of Roppa Wood. We took the path heading northwards around the edge of the wood to the northerly corner of the wood at map ref. SE586916.

Stile to Helmsley Moor from Roppa Wood

We turned left off the track to follow a path by the wall for about 200m to a stile. We climbed the stile and followed the muddy track to the ruins of New House farm.

There was standing water everywhere and plenty of mud on the sodden ground. We climbed over the stile onto the moor and took the wide stone track heading north west for about 1km to a bend in the track next to a stone wall at map ref. SE578921.

Heading for New House across Helmsley Moor

There were some flat stones amongst the collapsed walls where we sat for an early lunch break. The weather was starting to brighten up and by the time we set off again the misty rain had cleared.

Large sycamore tree at New House farm

Our lunch stop at New House farm

Crossing the stile into the area of dead bracken

From the ruined farm we crossed two fields heading roughly northwards on a public footpath. At the edge of the second field we came to a stile into an area covered with dead bracken.

We crossed the stile and followed the path across the bracken and into some birch woods. There are footpath marker posts at intervals to help people keep to the path which is above a steep slope leading to an old quarry face.

Path across the bracken above the old quarries

Start of the path down to Hagg End

After about 300m from the stile at map ref. SE575925, we came to a path off to our left heading down the steep slope through the birch woods between two disused quarries.

At the bottom of the slope the path was a bit awkward to find but we did find it and it brought us to the edge of the wood above a farm called Hagg End. We followed the path down the field beside Hagg End to the road, B1257, at map ref. SE570924. At the road we turned right to walk along the road for about 150 to a footpath on the left. We turned off the road to follow this footpath to a footbridge over the River Seph and up the bank to the edge of a wood at map ref. SE566924.

Track up through the woods above the River Seph

Stile out of the woods above Hagg End

We followed a track up through the woods and across a field to a lane at map ref. SE563920. We crossed the lane and continued along the farm access road to Low Ewe Cote farm. We followed the public footpath through the farm and up the hillside across the fields to the open moor. The whole hillside from the River Seph had been completely water logged and very muddy.

We crossed the moor to join the footpath around Easterside Hill at map ref. SE552915. Here we turned left to follow the path around the foot of Easterside Hill.

Blured shot of a fast moving lizard on the moor

Looking back to Easterside Hill from the road

After about 1km we came to a road at map ref. SE558906. We walked about 25m down the road to take the public footpath on the right across the fields, still very wet underfoot.

We dropped down the hillside to footbridge over the River Seph at map ref. SE561897. We crossed the river and followed the path across the field almost to Fair Hill Farm. Just before the farm the path goes left and then right to by-pass the farm and then climb up the steep hillside to a track at map ref. SE561892. We crossed the track and followed the path up the edge of a wood to the road, B1257, on Newgate Bank.

Footbridge over the River Seph

Path down to the River Seph

We walked up the hill for about 100m and then followed an unofficial path from the corner of a little disused quarry before the bend near the top of the hill. This path through the scrub led us to the view point platform and back to the car park. the whole walk had been about 13km and was quite tring in all the mud and wet. It had taken us around four and a half hour to walk. We all returned to Easingwold for a meal together to round off the day.