Reeth ~ Medium Walk

Distance Covered: 5.5 miles   Time to complete walk: 2 hours

Safety Tips: Use your GPS signal if you feel you have strayed off the walk. Be prepared for the steep incline of the walk.

This is an enjoyable walk,  with riverside, woodland and field walking and offers panoramic views of Swaledale at its summit. It will take around two hours to complete and is approximately 5 and a half miles long.

 

View of Swaledale

 

Getting There

From Middlesbrough take the A66 to Darlington and then take the A66 and then the M1 to Scotch Corner. At Scotch Corner look for the Richmond turn off which is the A6108. Follow this through Richmond and continue on it until you come to the B6270 right turning to Reeth. Follow this and parking can be found on the Green in Reeth and the parking fee is a voluntary contribution.

The Walk

                                                     Route of the Reeth Walk

From the Green, walk in a downhill direction back to Reeth Bridge.

 

Reeth Bridge

 

Over the bridge, carry on along the road for a while until it swings to the right. Look for a signpost sign to Grinton on the right and follow this footpath.

 

                                                               Grinton signpost

Follow the riverside path to a signpost then continue on a well marked path across fields until you reach Grinton Bridge. There is a right of way path to the left which will enable you to reach the road alongside the bridge.

 

Right of Way path

 

Cross the road and look for a path to the left beside the bridge. Follow this path which will follow the river for a while. Keep on it until you reach a metalled lane.

 

 

Riverside path view

 

Stile to metalled lane

 

Follow the lane, for about half a mile until you reach Marrick Priory. Marrick Priory, is used for residential and outdoor activities.

 

 

Marrick Priory

 

Walk past the buildings and over a cattle grid and immediately through a gate on your left which is signposted "Marrick".

 

 

Cattle grid

 

Gate to Marrick

 

Walk up the grassy track then follow the paved footpath through woodland. This is the climbing part of the walk, and the incline is steady but you may need to stop for breaks.

 

                                                                Woodland path

Continue the walk through a few fields, with a wall to your right, until you reach gates at a farm. Go through the gates and onto the road. Opposite Harlands House turn left and follow the road.

 

Harland House sign

 

Follow the road until you come to a triangular junction and take the left turning.

 

 

Take left turning

Follow the road past farm buildings for a quarter of a mile. Look for a stile at a footpath sign on your left.
             

 

Stile on left of road

Follow the track with the wall to your right and keep an eye out for another stile to your right which enables you to cross over to the other side of the wall.

 

Stile in wall

 

Continue on the track with the wall to your left, in the direction to meet a road in the distance. 

 

 

 





 

Path with road in the distance

 

Turn left on the road and follow it for three quarters of a mile. The road will descend steeply and offer panoramic views of Swaledale. On a bend to the left and before the two roads meet in a fork look for a small stile in the wall to your right. This should be signed "Fremington".

 

 

Stile in wall to the right

 

Go straight ahead through a field onto another stile. Continue along this waymarked field track, following all the waymarkers until you finally end up on a walled path behind houses.

 

 

 

Road path near houses

 

Follow the road left and then to the right and as it bends to the left go straight ahead through a stile.

 

 

Road and path leading to stile

 

Keep by the wall on the left and follow the path back to Reeth Bridge through more stiles and a field. Head back to Reeth for refreshments!

 

 

Path back to Reeth bridge

 

 

Reeth

 

In Saxon times, Reeth was only a settlement on the forest edge, but by the time of the Norman Conquest it had grown sufficiently in importance to be noted in the Domesday Book. Later it became a centre for hand-knitting and the local lead industry was controlled from here, but it was always a market centre for the local farming community.
On 5 July 2014, the Tour de France Stage 1 from Leeds to Harrogate passed through the village.
Village amenities include three public houses (the Black Bull Hotel, the Buck Hotel and the King's Arms), a post office and village shop, as well as the Burgoyne Hotel, which has been featured in the Good Hotel Guide and named one of Alistair Sawday's "Special Places to Stay", one of five National Park Centres for the Yorkshire Dales is located in Reeth. The local health establishment is Reeth Medical Centre, which serves over 200 square miles of land, caring for over 1,500 patients from the surrounding area.





 

 

 

Ravenscar ~ Medium Walk

Distance Covered: 4 miles   Time to complete walk: 2h 30m

Safety Tips: Take a walking stick and be careful on the Cleveland Way part of the walk which has cliff edge walking. Be prepared for a steep end to the walk. Take plenty of water and regular stops.

A coastal walk with amazing views of the cliffs and coastline. Steep towards the end of the walk, this will take around two hours to complete.

Getting There

From Middlesbrough go up Ormesby Bank and take the left turning at the roundabout onto Guisborough Road (A171). Follow the A171 to Whitby and stay on the A171 at Whitby towards Scarborough. Ravenscar is a left turning. It can be found after the Robin Hoods Bay turn off and before you reach Scarborough.

The Walk

 

Ravenscar

 

                     Ravenscar Walk Route

 

Parking can be found on the left of the road in front of the Raven Hall hotel. Walking towards the hotel you will notice the National Trust Coastal Centre on the left. Walk past the centre until you come to a fork in the path. Take the left fork onto the disused railway line.

 

 

Left fork in path

 

Follow the old railway route for some time until you come to a bridge ahead of you.

 

 

                     Bridge with right turning

Take the right turning which will take you onto a road with a steep descent towards Stoupebrow Cottage Farm. Passing the farm you will notice a small stile on your right to take you onto the Cleveland Way.

Cleveland Way

 

Follow the Cleveland Way along the coastline and admire the views of the coastline. Get your camera ready!

 

 

Coastal Views

 

Continue following signs for the Cleveland Way until you pass a few bridges and eventually arrive at the Old Alum Works.

 

 

Old Alum Works

 

 

Sign for the Cleveland Way

 

Continue on the Cleveland Way which will now turn away from the coast and head back to Ravenscar on a steep incline. Take the higher left path to head back to Ravenscar to the first signpost you seen at the start of your walk. Have a visit to the coastal centre which also has a café.

 

 

Higher path back to Ravenscar

 

 

Ravenscar

 

Known locally as Bay Town Ravenscar is a little known village between Whitby and Scarborough. It has a feeling of a remoteness and most of the other people you see will be fellow walkers. There is a prominent hotel at its highest point called the Raven Hall Hotel, which you will see on your walk along the Cleveland Way. Ravenscar began as a holiday resort but never quite finished and met its potential. It was going to be another Scarborough, but unsurprisingly due to its unstable geology and high cliffs, this made it a hazardous proposition. Most of the geology in the area is from the Jurassic Period. Numerous fault lines have left the coast in a state of flux.

 

 

 

 





 

 



 

The Bridestones ~ Medium Walk

Distance Covered: 1.75 miles   Time to complete walk: 1 hour

Safety Tips: Wrap up well if the weather is windy or cold as you are open to the elements for a long period on this walk. Apply plenty of sun lotion if it is a hot day and take plenty of water

Discover some mysterious rock formations, called the Bridestones in this walk in Dalby Forest. The walk can be short just to see The Bridestones or longer to include open moorland walking. This walk will guide you through the longer version. It will take approximately two hours to complete.

Getting There

From Middlesbrough go up Ormesby Bank, then turn left onto Middlesbrough road. Follow the A171 to Whitby and then take the right turning to Sleights and stay on the A169. Look for the left turning indicated as Dalby Forest Drive. Stay on this road until you see another left turning to Dalby Forest. This will take you into Dalby Forest.  You will reach a toll booth to enter the forest and there is a £7.00 charge to get into the forest.

  

 



 

The Walk

 

                   The Bridestones Walk route

From the Bridestones car park northern side, commence the walk going past the National Trust marker. Take the right turn and then the left fork in the path.

 

Start of walk

 

 

Take the left path

 

You will now climb through the wood. At the right bear right through some birch trees.

 

 

Bear right through the birch trees

 

You will now reach open moorland and the Bridestones will be in sight. Make your way towards them. There are two sets of Bridestones. The low Bride Stones are the ones on the path and you can follow the path further on to see the high Bridestones. The stones themselves are made from sandstone and have been shaped due to weathering. The most distinguishable stone is called the Pepper Pot.

 

 

The Bridestones and the Pepper Pot (above)

 

Continue on until you reach the last of the low bridestones and the path bears left. You can follow this path to reach the high Bridestones for a detour. Otherwise carry on with your walk taking the moorland route to the right.

 

 

Moorland route to the right

 

Carry on this moorland track which eventually meets a larger path to the edge of a regenerating forest. Turn left and follow this path for another 800 metres.

 

 

Path near regenerating forest

 

When you reach the edge of the moor, turn left immediately onto a track, keeping a wire fence on your right.

 

 

Left path

 

You will soon come to a pond. After the pond climb a stile and onto turn left onto the farm  track.

 

 

Stile near a pond

 

Farm track

 

Follow this farm track until you come to a gate approach High Pastures Farm. Go through the gate and immediately to your right go through another gate and

follow the fence on your left.

 

Gate near High Pastures Farm

 

Where the ground falls down into a dip look for a gap on the left and follow the top edge of the enclosure.

 

 

Gap to the left

 

Towards the end of this enclosure veer to the right and drop to a stile in the bottom right corner

 

 

Stile at bottom of enclosure

 

Climb diagonally through the next field to head for a gate which will lead you onto a lane. Turn left and follow the lane to where it dips and beyond this dip is a waymarked track to the left.

 

 

Left track

 

Keep ahead and through a gate into the Low Pastures Farmyard. Pass through the farmyard and look for a signpost to the Bridestones.

 

 

Bridestones signpost

 

Follow this path which descends through fields and into a woodland. Over a stile carry on down and then follow a bend by a cottage.

 

Path to cottage

 

Go left past the front of the cottage, rising to walk away along a grassy path, which later drops to cross a stream.

 

 

Stream crossing

 

Continue by a fence to your left and you will eventually reach the car park.

 

 

 

The Bridestones

 

 

The Bridestones on the North York Moors are North Yorkshire's distinctive but lesser known cousins to the famous Brimham Rocks over near Pately Bridge.
But our local "rocks" are better because when you visit, there will be far fewer visitors to get in the way of your enjoyment!
Because of the "undiscovered" nature of the North York Moors, even in August - high summer on the Moors - you might have the place pretty much to yourself.  And that's why we love this area!
The Bridestones themselves are found in an area of open moorland to the north of Dalby Forest and just off the A169 road to the North of Pickering on the way to Whitby.
According to the geology-boffins, they've been created from  an odd mix of layered soft and hard sandstone which has been weathered into fantastic standing shapes over thousands of years and by the forces of glaciation.
But local folklore for the Bridestones tell of petrified bridal parties lost in the fog that can rapidly descend on the moor.
You decide the truth for yourself.  They certainly have a mysterious and distinctive quality to them - which is hard to put your finger on!
The "Pepperpot" is perhaps the most iconic of all the standing stones and the one most often photographed today.