THURSDAY, MAY 29, 2014 The Northern Echo 39 Walks what’son Walks , and Kirby Hill

for 200 metres then, just after the Walk information road bends sharply round to the Distance: 13.2 km / 8.2 miles right, take the track to the left Unique corporate activity days, Time: 4 hours through a gate (signpost). Walk Navigation skills and team building experiences in the great outdoors. Maps: OS Explorer Sheet 304 straight on across the field and over & Richmond a stile across a small section of wall to join a track. Head straight on Parking: On-street along the track down through a gate parking throughout and continue on along the grassy RavensworthRefreshments: track to a second gate, after which at Ravensworth, Gilling West, turn sharp right alongside the and Kirby Hill fence to reach a stile beside a gate Terrain: Field, woodland and in the corner of the field. After this riverside paths, farm tracks and stile, turn left alongside the fence country lanes. Many paths are on your left then, where the fence muddy underfoot or overgrown bends away to the left, continue and there are crops in some fields. straight on across the field passing Several stiles to cross. a solitary tree to reach a stile over a gate onto fields. A clear path leads How to get there: Ravensworth stone wall. Walk straight on across straight on for 1 km meandering lies along a minor road just to the the next field to join the wooded across several fields and over a south of the A66 4.5 miles west of banks of Holme Beck on your left. succession of stiles towards Gilling . Head straight on alongside the West. As you approach the village stream on your left down to reach (after crossing a rough track across Caution: There is a small ford to the road beside Whashton Bridge. your path) head on alongside right to reach another gate in a Whashton. Walk through the cross over Smelt Mill Beck, which the hedge/fence on your left into may be difficult after heavy rain; At the road take the path stone wall. Head through this gate village passing the and Gilling West, where you turn right never cross a stream that is in 2opposite to the left (just before and follow the track down to the follow the lane straight on along the road, over a road bridge spate. There are a couple of steep the bridge) through a wall-gate right alongside the wall then at out of Whashton (take care across Gilling Beck and continue banks. There are livestock in some and follow the clear meandering the bottom of the small bank head walking along the road) down on for 200 metres to reach the gated of the fields. riverside path on to reach a bend to the left keeping the stone wall to reach a cross-roads – take in the stream with a large stone driveway on your right that leads on your right (ignore gate in the the road opposite and follow house on the opposite bank. Do to St Agatha’s Church (opposite the wall). Head on alongside this wall, this up to reach Kirby Hill. Points of interest village hall). RAVENSWORTH is a beautiful not cross the bridge towards the through a white gate then on to Where the road turns sharp left village with a large village green house, but head up along the clear Follow this driveway down to reach another gate that leads on to immediately after the church overlooked by old cottages, a path into woodland (still with the 4reach St Agatha’s Church. Walk a rough grassy and slightly sunken (just before the pub) take the Methodist Chapel and a lovely stream on your left) and follow this through the churchyard passing track across your path. footpath to the right (signpost) through a squeeze-stile and country pub. At the top end of on to reach a footbridge across the to the left of the church to reach a Turn right down along this follow the path slanting down the village are the gaunt ruins stream just after the house. Cross wooden kissing-gate at the top end 6track to reach a gate and a cattle the hillside to the left to reach of Ravensworth Castle. From this footbridge then head to the of the churchyard. Head through grid then continue on along the a stile in the corner of the field Ravensworth field, riverside and right to join a lane which you follow this gate then bear left across the track with the stone wall on your beside a gate. Head through woodland paths and tracks lead to for a short distance then, where field, over a stile in a hedge and right – where this stone wall ends this squeeze-stile and walk the hamlet of and then the lane bends to the left, head off up to quickly reach a road (Waters (at the end of the field after the on alongside the wall on your into Gilling West. Remarkably, the lane to the right alongside the Lane) at a junction. At this junction cattle grid) turn left along a rough left then at the end of the Gillin West was a very important riverside path. Follow this path head straight on up the road (Old track. Follow this track up into field (with the farm on your place in Anglo-Saxon times. From down to reach a track and ford Hall Lane) towards ‘Gillingwood Hartforth Wood – the track drops left) cross the stile and head Gilling West, old paths and tracks across the stream – head across Hall’ and follow the lane as it climbs quite steeply down through the across the next field, bearing lead up onto a low ridge of land the footbridge beside the ford and up, then levels out before climbing woods and crosses Smelt Mill Beck walk straight on along the riverside gently up again and round to the via a ford or some large boulders slightly to the left, passing with fine views across the broad over earthworks to reach a vale of Holme Beck. Smelt Mill path, passing Hartforth Hall across right to reach the farm buildings at (stepping stones) then leads steeply to your left, for 300 metres to reach Gillingwood Hall. up – where the track levels out at stile towards the far left-hand Beck and Hartforth Wood are past corner of the field. Cross before reaching Whashton from a stile beside an old stone bridge. Follow the lane passing in front the top of this climb, head straight Cross the stile and turn left over on (ignore the clear track to the over this stile (and stream) where a lane leads into the historic 5of the farmhouse and on through to quickly join a track, where Kirby Hill. the old stone bridge then follow the the double gates into the farmyard. right) alongside the wall on your lane up into Hartforth. right across wooded pastures down you turn right down to join the Head through the farmyard then road on a bend. Head straight The walk As you emerge onto the large bear to the right before the large through a gate and on through another gate in the far right-hand on along this road back up into With your back to the Bay Horse 3village green at the centre of barn ahead of you through a gate Ravensworth. Mark Reid 1Inn at Ravensworth, follow the Hartforth turn immediately right (beside a low barn) onto a grassy corner of the field (to the right of the farm buildings of Whashton Walking Weekends 2014 main road (left-hand fork) across along the lane across the top of the track. Follow this track up through Hag) that leads onto a lane. Peak District, Dales, the village green and passing the village green then, where this lane another gate at the end of the & Snowdonia castle ruins on your right. Continue turns to the left towards the large farm buildings then continue on Turn right up along the lane walkingweekenders.co.uk along this road out of Ravensworth house, head straight on through a alongside the wall/woods on your 7and follow it up into

Countrydiary By Phil GatesBBirdwatch y Ian Kerr

HE GRASSLAND on the limestone featured on the back of EN years ago the first young red kites persist and up to a dozen have been victims cliffs stretching southwards from the eight-sided brass were released with the aim of re- of illegal poisoning over the past five T Seaham to Hawthorn Dene hosts one T threepenny pieces. establishing a north east population years. Such offences usually take place of the finest displays of wild flowers in our Common milkwort, 170 years after these spectacular birds, on private land so the known cases are region, making it an attraction for anyone which grows amongst with wing spans of over five feet and probably just the tip of the iceberg. who loves wild flowers. It will be at its best the short grasses and deeply forked tails, were wiped out by As scavengers, kites are extremely during the early months of summer. bird’sfoot trefoil that Victorian persecution. vulnerable to poisoning, as this spring’s There are some fine displays of orchids survive on the dry, A total of 93 birds from the thriving appalling incident near Inverness showed. along this coastline. Last week the spring- thin soil on limestone Chilterns population were freed over a There, 16 kites and seven buzzards were flowering early purples were still in bloom outcrops, has beautiful three-year period in the Derwent Valley killed. Despite rewards totalling £23,000 but they’ll soon be followed by spotted, sky blue flowers, and quickly established themselves and no arrests have been made, indicating the marsh and twayblade orchids. Cranesbills, although pink- and started to nest. Although most remained difficulties facing police. whose name refers to their birds’ beak- white-flowered forms around the valley and north Durham, To mark the 10th anniversary of the local shaped fruits, are also one of the highlights also sometimes turn others spread to breed in Teesdale and project, the Friends of Red Kites (FoRK) is and the first to flower is the magenta- up. Yellow-wort, an Northumberland, as was hoped. carrying out a breeding survey. It is also unusual egg yolk-coloured annual, whose coloured bloody cranesbill. In the scrubby If they had expanded in a similar way working on tracking strategies to enable stems grow through middle of its grey- vegetation on the edge of the cliffs you can to kites in other regions we should now dead kites to be quickly found and to pin- find the cream flowers of the extremely green leaves, also shares this habitat. Here have a breeding population of over 50 point exact persecution locations to help spiny but intensely fragrant burnet rose. you’ll also find carline thistle, with a centre pairs. Instead, for the past three years police investigations and, hopefully, secure In a few places, right on the edge of the of small honey-coloured flowers that are the population has flat-lined with about convictions. FoRK is organising a public cliffs, there are some lovely specimens of surrounded by a fringe of papery bracts. It 20 pairs. Breeding soon petered out in Kite-Watch event on Sunday, June 8, from sea pink, also known as thrift. Readers of comes into bloom now but its ‘everlasting’ Teesdale and elsewhere, with pairs now 10am-4pm at Derwent Country Park. my vintage, who can recall pre-decimal flowers persist through autumn into winter, confined to the valley and adjacent areas It will be signposted from the free currency, will probably remember that this only breaking up after the plant has died. of Durham. Sadly, Victorian attitudes Winlaton Mill car park.