THURSDAY, JANUARY 29, 2015 The Northern Echo 39 Walks what’son Walks Askrigg, Woodhall & Nappa Mill (passing beneath a bridge and then Walk information the Kings Arms doubling as the passing an old wooden railway ‘Drovers’ whilst the grand three- shed on your right) to reach a storey house near the Market Cross small bridlegate across your path, Distance: 8 km / 5 miles was ‘Skeldale House’. Askrigg after which continue along the Time: 3 hours church, dedicated to St Oswald, overgrown railway embankment dates from the 13th Century and Map: OS Explorer Sheet OL30 for a further 100 metres to reach is the largest church in the dale Parking: On-street parking a missing bridge in front of you serving several communities and where you drop down to the right throughout Askrigg, as well as a small still retains some original features car park at the top of the village. over a stile that leads out onto including lead on its roof from local a field. After the stile, carry on Refreshments: Pubs at Askrigg. mines. across the field alongside the How to get there: Follow the A684 railway line on your left to reach through Wensleydale to Bainbridge, The walk a gate just to the right of (and then take the turning passing to the beyond) a barn in the field corner right of the Rose & Crown and follow From the old Market Cross in that leads onto a farm lane beside this road to Askrigg. 1the centre of Askrigg near the an old bridge/ford. Terrain: Field, woodland and church, walk up along the Main Head straight on along the lane riverside paths, stony tracks, old Street passing the Kings Arms on 5(ignore the bridge/ford) down railway track-bed, grassy moorland your left then take the turning to to reach Nappa Mill Farm. As you and a short but quite steep ascent. the left towards ‘Muker’ just after reach the buildings follow the track Lots of stiles and some road walking the Crown Inn. Follow this road along the bottom edge of the field right). Head through this gate and around Woodhall and Worton. to the right of the large corrugated steeply up out of the village then, to soon reach a metal gate in the follow the track ahead bearing metal barn to reach a stile beside Caution: The climb up to Oxclose just after you have left the village corner. Head through this gate and very slightly right across old mine a gate just to the side of this barn Road (Heugh) is quite steep. This behind and before a stone barn on follow the grassy path ahead, which workings, through another gate in (signpost). After the gate, head walk involves some short sections of your right (just after the ‘A skrigg’ soon slants steadily up across the a wall then continue on across the across the field to a footbridge, road walking. There are some small village sign) take the footpath to the wooded hillside to reach a large next field to reach another gate, after which bear left towards the fords to cross, which may be difficult right (signpost) over a stile beside gap in an old wall at the top of with a small copse of deciduous river and through a squeeze-stile or impassable after heavy rain. Take a gate. Head straight on alongside the woods, after which bear right trees on your left. Carry straight then left over another footbridge care when walking along or crossing the wall on your right then, as through a gateway in a wall then on along the track gradually the roads. and follow the riverside path on to you approach the end of the field, follow the grassy path bearing left dropping down (fence on right), reach a wall-gate that leads onto cross the stile to the right, after up across the middle of the field to through another gate then follow the road. Turn left along the road Points of interest which head straight on for a short reach a wall stile in the top corner the track bearing down to the right to reach Worton Bridge. that leads onto an enclosed track (signpost ‘Woodhall’) winding quite distance then turn left through Immediately before Worton HE history of Askrigg a small wall-gate (signpost) then (Heugh). steeply down to reach the road at Woodhall. 6Bridge take the footpath to the stretches back to pre- straight on across the field, keeping Turn right along this track to right (signpost ‘A skrigg’) and follow Conquest days, and the close to the wall on your left, to 3quickly reach a junction (ignore Cross over the main road and this clear flagged path across fields Tvillage grew as a trading reach a gate in the top left-hand metalled lane down to your right) 4take the lane opposite (sign then up through squeeze-stiles centre as it lay just outside the corner of the field that leads onto a where you carry straight on along ‘Woodhall’) and follow this down, to reach the old track-bed of the boundaries of the old Forest of walled path. Follow this walled path the stony track ahead rising up for bearing round to the right through railway. Cross over this old railway Wensleydale and so was exempt straight on, which soon becomes 175 metres to reach a gate at the end Woodhall to reach West End line and follow the path to the left from the Norman forest laws. A an enclosed track which you of the walled track (barn on your Farm at the end of the metalled up some steps then bearing to the market charter was granted in follow round over a bridge across right). Head through the gate and lane. Continue straight on along left up across the hillside to reach a 1587 and Askrigg developed into an Newbiggin Beck to emerge in the follow the track straight on (grassy the track through the farmyard gate in the field corner, after which important market town; however, centre of Newbiggin. moorland) alongside the wall on passing some barns on your right head straight on up alongside the by the turn of the 19th Century Head straight across the small your right for 600 metres to reach then carry on bearing slightly left wall on your left to reach a field the market had lapsed and Hawes 2village green along the lane a gate across the track in the wall along the track passing some more gate that leads onto a track on the gradually began to take over as passing between the houses corner (just beyond a dilapidated barns on your left to reach an old outskirts of Askrigg. Follow this the ‘capital’ of the upper dale. The (passing George’s Cottage on your metal barn). After this gate, carry bridge beneath the embankment track straight on then bending village is quiet now, but it is not left) to reach a gate at the end of straight on along the indistinct of the former railway line (bridge round to the left back into the hard to imagine the hustle and the lane immediately after Willow grassy track then, where the wall missing), after which follow the centre of Askrigg. bustle of the market place as you Garth house on your left. After on your right bends away after 100 track round to the right (signpost rest on the stone steps of the old the gate, head left up across the metres, carry straight on along the ‘A skrigg’) to soon reach a gate at the end of the track. After the gate Market Cross and look out across middle of the field to reach a small indistinct grassy track to reach Mark Reid head straight on alongside the the cobbles towards the sweeping wall-gate set in a wall corner (half another gate in a wall across your Walking Weekends 2014 fence/railway embankment on main street with its elegant three- way up the field), after which head path (where you also re-join wall Peak District, Yorkshire Dales, your right through a squeeze-stile storey Georgian houses. Askrigg’s straight on alongside the wall on on your right). Head through this Lake District & Snowdonia just after a small stream at the end heyday was in the 18th & 19th your left to reach a squeeze-stile to gate (signpost ‘Castle Bolton’) and walkingweekenders.co.uk Centuries when industries such your left just before the end of the continue along the track (wall on of this field, after which continue as lead mining, textile production field, after which head to the right your right), passing some old sheep on for a few paces then turn right Unique corporate activity days, and clock making flourished. In the across two more fields (through pens then drop down slightly over through a kissing gate onto the old navigation skills and team building 1970s and 1980s the village was used squeeze-stiles) to reach a stone a ford across Birkin Gill and on railway line. Turn left along the experiences in the great outdoors. as the setting for the TV series ‘A ll barn. Skirt to the left around the to reach another gate in the wall railway line (signpost ‘Nappa’) and teamwalking.co.uk Creatures Great and Small’ with barn, after which head straight on corner (Scots Pine trees on your follow it straight on for 700 metres

Countrydiary By Phil GatesBBirdwatch y Phil Gates

WAS amazed to see active honeybees and February and March OBBERY with violence is not just winter. This kestrel must simply have a bumblebee at the weekend, just three include hellebores, confined to thugs in our news pages decided to let someone else do the hard I days after the last snow had melted R and court reports. It’s also frequent whose flowers provide work. Most birds, it seems, will turn and the bitterly cold winds had died away. an energy-rich nectar among birds, as I was reminded of that the to robbery and use a bit of violence if They were foraging on a winter-flowering top-up, lungwort other day on my local patch when a barn required. bush called Viburnum tinus in a sheltered which bees find owl flew past, a large and plump field vole There have been a few more signs garden where, for a few hours, it felt like a irresistible, and winter curling from its beak. of spring with chaffinches, great tits balmy April spring day. It seemed that the aconite whose yellow, It was heading towards the safety of a and dippers singing and great spotted bees were under the same impression and buttercup-like blooms large, disused garden where it roosts in a provide easy access. woodpeckers ‘drumming’ although forecast the honeybees were taking the opportunity dense holly tree, insulated from cold and colder weather from today could bring to fill their pollen baskets. I only caught a wind. The owl had almost got there when things to a temporary halt. In recent years there have been numerous brief glimpse of the a kestrel shot out, chattering loudly and sightings of bee activity in winter and bumblebee in the ambushed it in mid-air. The startled owl Among rarer species attracting in southern England there are a growing garden but I am pretty dropped the vole which was immediately attention, the rough-legged buzzard number of reports of red-tailed bumblebee sure it was a tree bee. snatched and carried off by the attacker. has remained around the Quarrington colonies remaining active all year round This species is a recent arrival in Britain. It It was the third time in the past couple of Hill and Coxhoe area. But seekers after in suburban gardens. They have been began to colonise the North-East about five winters that I’d seen kestrels do it, and on other winter rarities have had to head able to remain active because of the trend years ago and has settled in rapidly, nesting each occasion the owls seemed to be taken to Northumberland for two long-stayers, for growing winter-flowering plants. The in holes in trees and sometimes in bird nest completely by surprise. the rose-coloured starling at Prudhoe sight of the honeybees at the weekend was boxes. It’s an exceptionally hardy species, It’s not as if there was a shortage of and great grey shrike at West Hartford. A a reminder of the rewards to be gained emerging from hibernation very early in voles around the place as last year’s high Ross’s goose was with several thousand from cultivating some winter blooms in spring and is an excellent pollinator of population, which allowed both owls and pink-feet at Druridge Bay and a drake the garden. Plants that begin to flower raspberries, blackcurrants, gooseberries kestrels to have a wonderful breeding black scoter was with common scoters off now and will coax bees out on mild days in and fruit trees. season, has continued so far through this Cheswick.