Yorkshire Walks

Our parking spot off Carr Lane on the northern edge of Kilburn

Following Carr Lane into Kilburn

The lane to the left off Carr Lane

Path between the gardens to the parish church

On our left just inside the churchyard there is a young yew tree with a plaque in front of it. Apparently this young tree a one of around 1000 cuttings taken from a 2000 year old yew tree on a hill top at Old Enton in Surrey at the millennium, 2000, and distributed throughout the country. (For more information on this project to propagate yew trees see "The Conservation Foundation"

We set off along Carr Lane heading into Kilburn to the road junction of Carr Lane with the main street through Kilburn. At the junction Carr Lane ended and the main street through Kilburn turned to our right heading for Bagby and Thirsk. At this road junction we turned left along a narrow lane. After about 50m along this lane we turned right off the lane up a few steps to a public footpath between the gardens. After about 20m the path led us into the churchyard of the parish church of St. Mary.

Turning left off Carr Lane opposite the turning to Bagby & Thirsk

Step to the public footpath to the Parish Church of St. Mary

Entering the churchyard

Yew tree grown from a cutting from the Old Enton Yew

Plaque commemorating the millennium yew

Path through the churchyard

The Kilburn Parish Church of St. Mary

Looking back across the churchyard to the church

Path to High Kilburn from the churchyard

The path continues on the other side of the access track

We walked in the dappled sunlight, between hedges for about 100m to a gate where the public footpath crosses an access track. We crossed the track and passed through the gate on the other side of the track to continue along the public footpath climbing more steeply up the hillside for about 120m to a gate onto a road at a bend at High Kilburn (Map ref. SE 516 797).

We walked along the public footpath past the church to the main gate out of the churchyard. This gate leads back to the main street in Kilburn. We ignored the main gate and turned left to continue along a public footpath at the edge of the churchyard heading roughly northeast to a gate in a white picket fence in the corner of the churchyard. We passed through the gate and continued along the pleasant footpath.

Turning right along the path to the corner of the churchyard

Gate in the little white picket fence out of the churchyard

Gate where the path crosses an access track

Path climbing up to High Kilburn

Gate onto the road just below the green at High Kilburn

Turning left across the green at High Kilburn

Track up to the fields above Brow Bank

A glimpse of the Kilburn White Horse across the fields

The track bent left around the corner of a garden and then bent right climbing up the hillside. We followed the track up the hillside for about 200m to a sharp left hand bend (map ref. SE 519 799). We continued along the track round the left hand bend for another 30m. Here the track turned sharp right to a stile over a fence into a field on the hill top.

At the road we continued straight ahead for about 100m to the village green in High Kilburn. At the green we turned left and crossed the green to a grassy track between the houses (map ref. SE 517 797). The grass on the track soon disappeared and we continued along a muddy track under the trees.

Public footpath between the houses from the green

Track up to the fields above Brow Bank

Stile on the track at map ref. SE 518 798

Sharp left hand bend in the track

Another 30m along the track it turns right to a stile

Stile from the end of the track to a path across the open field to the edge of Brow Bank

Skirting around the trunks of several fallen trees

Path between the trees on Brow Bank & the gorse scrub above

Waymark post where the path turns down the wooded hillside

Steep path straight down the wooded hillside

We followed the path along the top of Brow Bank for almost 300m to a way-mark post where the path turned right to head down the steep hillside to the road. We were glad of our trekking poles (not walking sticks) to help slow us down on the perilous descent (well it's perilous if you are in the late 70's, early 80's age group). At the bottom of the slope we crossed the stile to the road called River Road.

Ahead of us from the stile there were some large fallen trees which we skirted around and crossed the grassland to the top edge of the trees across the field on our right. The OS Explorer Map shows a wooded strip along Brow Bank but on the ground there is a large area of gorse covered scrubland in addition to the woods on Brow Bank. The public footpath is below the gorse along the top of a steep escarpment (Brow Bank) covered in trees.

Path along the top of Brow Bank

Path between the trees on Brow Bank & the gorse scrub above

Looking ahead to the Hambleton Hills

Waymark post at the bottom of the wood above River Road

Stile from the woodland down to River Road

It's a steep drop from the stile to River Road

One of many clumps of primroses by the road side

Nearing the junction of River Road and Oldstead Road

They had come from the glider club airfield on top of Roulston Scar. During our walk along the road we saw several of these glider launching flights. At the road junction with Oldstead Road we turned left and walked along Oldstead Road back towards Kilburn.

At River Road we turned left and walked along the road for about 300m to the junction with Oldstead Road. Along the way we heard and saw a small aeroplane as it appeared from over Roulston Scar ahead of us and to our left. The little plane was towing a glider up to a soaring height.

Walking along River Road towards Oldstead Road

Tow plane launching a glider from Roulston Scar

Turning left from River Road onto Oldstead Road

Walking along Oldstead Road towards Kilburn

All that remains are two support posts & the overgrown bower

Passing the road at the bottom of White Horse Bank

Following Carr Lane back to Kilburn

At the road junction of Oldstead Road and White Horse Bank our road changed its name to Carr Lane. We continued along Carr Lane for about 500m back to our parking spot where we had left Jim's car and where my wife was waiting to pick me up. It had been a lovely walk in this warm spring weather.

After about 800m along Oldstead Road we came to the junction with the narrow road coming down from White Horse Bank on our right. Just before this junction we passed remains of a seat that had been in a little bower cut into the tall hedge. On 3 September 2008 I took a photo of Jim on this seat and it was sad to see that so little of the seat and its hedgerow bower now remains.

This was the sheltered seat in the bower on 3 Sept 2008

Following Carr Lane back to Kilburn

Kilburn White Horse cut into the face of the Hambleton Hills

Returning to our parking place off Carr Lane at the end of our walk