Walks 39 what’son WalksColsterdale and Slipstone Crags

Walk Information valley are the impressive lines of gritstone crags that trace the valley Distance: 10.5 km (6.5 miles) slopes; our route passes to the side Time: 3 hours of Slipstone Crags, a popular Maps: OS Explorer OL30 and 302 – climbing spot. Beyond Slipstone always carry maps with you. Crags, our route heads up onto the Parking Small parking area beside lonely expanse of Agra Moor. This the red phone box at Gollinglith is walking par excellence, high up Foot, Colsterdale (SE 153 809) on the breezy heights with far- Refreshments: None en route; reaching views in all directions. We closest pub is the Black Swan at soon join a shooters’ track that Fearby heads eastwards along the edge of Terrain: Clear moorland tracks and Witton Moor to join a lane near paths for most of the way, with Moorcote Farm; the views ahead some quiet country lanes and field across the Vale of Mowbray paths in places. Some of the paths towards the North York Moors are are rough underfoot, and there are incredible. Schematic map only several areas of boggy ground to The ‘return leg’ of this walk heads cross; the moorland is exposed to from Ellingstring up across the Take OS maps with you the elements. Tranmire moors, passing a couple Open Access: Part of this walk of inscribed old boundary stones follows a track across Witton Moor along the way, before dropping clear path across this flat moorland After the gate, walk straight up field and through the gate in the (Open Access Land). See local signs back down into Colsterdale via for 1.5 km before gently dropping 4the field to a gate in a fence at the wall ahead, after which turn left for information or visit Agra Crags and a scattering of down (boggy section), passing a line top of the field (open moorland across the field and through a openaccess.gov.uk farms. of grouse butts to join a clear track ahead), after which follow the path gateway in the wall that leads into a How to get there: From Masham, and a wall across your path, with a bearing slightly left to join the wall small plantation. Turn right along follow a minor road westwards gate in the wall (at the other side of and Ellingstring Plantation on your the track (plantation on your left through Fearby and then Healey The walk the moor). left. Ignore the stile into the forest, and wall on your right) then, where then take the turning signed From the parking area beside the and walk straight on alongside the the plantation ends, walk straight Colsterdale and follow this road for 1‘phone box at Gollinglith Foot Do not head through this gate but wall/plantation on your left, gently on down across the field alongside just over a mile to reach the hamlet (with your back to the parking 3turn right immediately before it rising and undulating across the the wall on your right for 75 metres of Gollinglith Foot. area), turn left along the road along the track alongside the wall edge of the moorland (small then, at the telegraph pole, follow Caution: This walk includes long (ignore the lane over the ford) and (Open Access land) and follow this stream/boggy ground in places), for the indistinct grassy track winding stretches across open moorland, follow this road heading up through straight on alongside the wall on 750 metres before dropping down down the hillside to reach a gate with rough paths and boggy/wet Colsterdale alongside the wooded your left heading along the edge of into a boggy ‘dip’, 50 metres beyond near a wall corner at the bottom of ground in places. The moorland is banks of the River Burn on your Witton Moor for almost 1 km then, which you reach a bridlegate to your the field that leads into birch exposed to the elements. left. After 700 metres, follow the where the clear stony track turns left through the wall at the end of woodland. Head through the gate road bending sharply up to the right sharp right towards the Shooting the plantation (waymarker). and follow the clear track winding then left before levelling out – Box, continue straight on along the down through the birch woodland, Points of interest continue straight on along the road, track ahead (still with the wall on Head through this gate then turn alongside a wall and plantation on Colsterdale is a hidden valley, far with the valley falling away to your your left). After 200 metres you 5immediately right (crossing onto your left (ignore the track and gate from the madding crowds of the left, dropping gently downhill for come to the long and narrow East the left-hand side of the wall) and into this plantation), and follow this busier Yorkshire dales; a glimpse of 500 metres (ignore the track Belt Plantation on your left – follow the clear path straight on wall as it curves down and round to how the dales once looked before branching off to the right to West continue along the clear track gently rising up with the wall now the left heading out of the birch tourism. From its source high on Agra Farm) then, where the road gently heading down for a further 1 on your right. The path soon leads woodland (Low Agra Farm down the bleak moors between levels out, take the bridleway km (plantation on your left) to reach gently down over more boggy across to your right) to join the farm a wall (and track) coming in from ground (Swinney Beck) after which track leading from Low Agra Farm. Nidderdale and Coverdale around branching off up to the right across your right which funnels you down the path bears slightly away from Follow this track straight on (to the the three distinctive flat-topped the bracken-covered hillside, to quickly reach a gate across the the wall and rises up to reach a gate left) to soon reach a gate across the heather-clad heights of Little Haw, marked by a rusting gate and a blue waymarker. track, with superb views ahead. in a wall across your path (end of track (Low Agra Farm sign), after Great Haw and South Haw, the Head through the gate and continue the moorland). Head through the which follow the track heading peaty waters of the River Burn along the track heading down, with gate and follow the indistinct grassy down across the hillside back to flows for several miles eastwards to Follow the bridleway slanting up 2 across the bracken-covered a wall to your left and moorland to track straight on across the rough reach the parking area at swell the waters of the River Ure hillside for 300 metres to reach a your right, for 600 metres (passing pastureland for 300 metres to join a Gollinglith Foot. just to the south of Masham. So gate in a wall corner, after which the entrance to Moorcote Farm rough track that leads quickly down why is this valley not named after follow the clear but badly eroded halfway along this track) to join a through a gate in a wall Mark Reid its river and called Burndale? The track slanting up to the right across road on a sharp bend. Follow this (waymarker), after which follow the Author of The Inn Way series. answer lies across the hills, for the bracken and heather hillside road straight on for 500 metres to track down and curving to the left scattered across the moors are towards the left-hand side of reach Angram Cote Farm on your over a bridge across Gir Beck then primitive coal pits, worked as long Slipstone Crags. The clear track left (on the outskirts of follow the grassy track straight on Unique corporate activity days, ago as medieval times (or earlier) rises up for 0.75 km and passes just Ellingstring), where you turn right across the middle of the field to and so this dale became known as to the west of Slipstone Crags, just through a gate in a fence opposite reach another gate in a fence (25 navigation skills and team building the valley of the ‘coal pits’, or beyond which the track heads up this farm, and just before a wayside metres to the right of a solitary experiences in the Great Outdoors. Colsterdale. onto the flat moorland of Agra stone-built well/spring and Keeper’s tree). Head through this gate and teamwalking.co.uk Another distinctive feature of this Moor. Carry straight on along the Cottage. walk straight on across the next Countrydiary Birdwatch

WALK along the seashore on a late Stranded kelp fronds are often covered ATCH out for Waxwings if you birds because of their habit of descending autumn day provides a reminder of with the calcareous have berried shrubs in your on low shrubs often used to landscape A the hidden forests that lie just encrustations of sea Wlocality. These colourful visitors shopping centre car parks. Appropriately, offshore, below low tide level. mats, made up of are dominating the scene with parties 50 have been around Sainsbury’s in Piles of brown kelp washed up along the hundreds of tiny homing in on berries across the region. Middlesbrough and 26 at Tesco in strandline by gales are usually dominated rectangular There have been dozens of widespread Billingham. by two giants of these marine forests. Sea compartments that are sightings with some lucky birders finding The Bee-eater at Seaburn delighted birders belt has fronds like broad belts with homes to interconnecting them in their own areas of Darlington until the weekend. They reported that undulating edges that are sometimes three colonies of tiny animals that with, for example, larger parties including despite the lateness of the season it was metres long, while oarweed is shorter but filter plankton from the sea. 200 around Woodland Road, 125 in Eskdale still managing to find wasps. has fronds divided into up to ten strap-like The holdfasts of kelps still Street and 73 in Duke Street. A hundred attached to rocks host have been around Houghall College, The illegal persecution of birds of prey is fingers. Both are normally anchored to on the agenda this weekend at the annual rocks offshore and although some are communities of sea squirts, Durham, and 80 at Preston Road, Stockton. sponges, tube worms and a Northern England Raptor conference, in wrenched free with their rock still Although a few occur each winter they Newcastle. The RSPB’s Birdcrime 2011 attached after severe storms, it’s often a host of small animals that live in these have irruption years and this is one of underwater forests. The presence of this report, just published, details a Kestrel and tiny shellfish that’s responsible for them them. Arrival was triggered by a a Red Kite being shot and a Buzzard being cast up on the shore. Take a close marine life amongst decomposing piles of widespread failure of berries in kelp on the beach provides a clue to what poisoned in North Yorkshire. In Durham, a look at their broken stems you’ll often find Scandinavia and western Russia. They Marsh Harrier and a Barn Owl were shallow pits, excavated by blue-rayed lies offshore, but you need to take a walk first arrived in Scotland and then literally out onto a pier, on a bright day at low tide gunned down. The young harrier was limpets that feed on the seaweed and ate their way southwards, stripping berries found near Barnard Castle with gunshot weaken its stems. These are among the when the sea is calm and clear, to en route. With their tame manner, fluffy appreciate the elegant beauty of these wounds to both wings and one leg. Happily, most beautiful shellfish around our shores, crests, black face masks and bright red after veterinary care it recovered and was with shells decorated by iridescent, submerged forests as they gently sway in wing markings (which gives their name), the ocean currents. released back into the wild. Sadly, our electric-blue radiating lines that are they present an exotic sight on winter region remains a persecution blackspot. produced by the peculiar way in which days. light is reflected within the shell. Phil Gates They are often referred to as supermarket Ian Kerr