Yorkshire Walks

Setting off eastwards along Main Street in Sutton-on-the-Forest

Walking along Main Street towards the telephone box

Jim & I walked about 150m eastwards along Main Street to a red phone box on the left hand side of the road. Opposite the phone box there is a public footpath heading southwards from Main Street along a walled alleyway.

It was a bright sunny morning that was expected to stay dry all day and my friend Jim and I drove separately to meet at map ref. SE 585 647, in the Main Street at Sutton-on-the-Forest just a few kilometres from our homes in Easingwold. Jim parked his car there and my wife took our car into York to do some shopping.

Crossing the road to the public footpath

Heading southwards from Main Street along the public footpath

Public footpath along the alleyway

Footpath leading to the fields

Footpath heading diagonally across the field

Through the gate the path kept to our right along the edge of the field with the woodland of Sutton Park over the fence to our right. After almost 250m our path along the field edge crossed another path coming across the field from our left and heading into the woodland on our right.

A little over 100m from Main Street there was a children's play area in the field on our left and a few metres further on our footpath came out into a small field. The well walked path took us diagonally across the field to a gate in the far left hand corner.

Children's play ground to the left of the footpath

Gate to the path across the fields

Through the gate we turned right along the field edge

We followed the public footpath along the field edge with the hedge on our right

Long straight path along the field edge

I made the mistake of continuing straight on with the hedge on our right to the end of the field with the boundary of a caravan site ahead. It was my own silly fault. I have an old map and this is the route the path took then. We scrambled through the hedge in to corner of the field and rejoined the proper route of the path on the opposite side of the hedge.

We continued following the footpath southwards along the edge of the field for over 800m to map ref. SE 589 634. Here there is a farm access track heading west across the field to our right. Our path turns right here and then at once turns left to continue along the field edge with the hedge now on the left of the path.

Long straight path along the field edge

Here the path crosses to the other side of the hedge, but we wrongly kept straight on along the old route of the path

Continuing along the path with the hedge now on our left

Crossing the footbridge

Unusual stile

We continued through several wooden pedestrian gates onto Goose Lane. All this part of the path was well maintained with all the gates in good condition.

We continued southwards along the edge of the field, with the hedge on our left. We crossed a wooden footbridge over a small stream and followed the path along the field edge to Goose Farm.

Field corner near the footbridge

Following the field path towards Goose farm

Good pedestrian gate by the field hedge

Gate from Goose Farm onto Goose Lane

We turned left onto Goose Lane

Walking towards the left hand bend in Goose Lane

Heading northwards from the bend

We passed the industrial estate on our right and continued for another 300m to the left hand bend in the road. We walked along the road side for about 1km from the bend to a public footpath across the fields on our left just beyond a minor road coming in from our right.

At Goose Lane we turned left and walked along the grass verge heading north east. This road is on the route of the number 40 bus between Easingwold and York and the traffic was fast moving on this straight stretch of road.

Following Goose Lane past the industrial estate

Left hand bend in Goose Lane

Heading northwards from the bend

Turning left off the road to follow the public footpath across the fields

Public footpath across the fields

Public footpath through the woods at Sutton Park

We followed this well walked wide path heading northwards not far from the edge of the wood. The path on the ground follows the edge of the wood unlike the route of the path shown on the Explorer map cutting diagonally across the corner of the wood.

At this path we turned left off the road and walked along the clear public footpath across the fields. We crossed our outward route and entered the woodland at the edge of Sutton Park. Just inside the wood the path turned right.

Field path heading for the woods at Sutton Park

Public footpath through the woods at Sutton Park

Path past the fence around the open grassland of Sutton Park leading to a gravel courtyard by the Sutton Park Tea Rooms

Public footpath nearing the Sutton Park tea rooms

The public footpath along the vehicle exit from the tea rooms

Main Street opposite the exit from Sutton Park

We came out on to the Main Street in the village. At the Main Street we turned right to Jim's car at the end of the walk. My wife picked me up from here and we drove home back to Easingwold. The whole walk had been a little over 5km. It was really more than I can walk comfortably now. I managed it but I was very happy for the break at the tea rooms. This short flat walk had taken me around two and a half hours.

It is a very pleasant woodland path and we followed it past the fence around the open grassland of Sutton Park. The path along the access track brought us to a gravel courtyards by the Sutton Park Tea Rooms. There were tables set out in the sunshine along the wall of the tea rooms and we stopped here for a coffee and a light lunch near the end of our walk. After our break we followed the public footpath out of the vehicle exit from the car park.

Approaching the Sutton Park tea rooms

Footpath along the vehicle exit onto Main Street

Public footpath sign above an electricity sub station

Jim returning to his car on Main Street at the end of the walk