THURSDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2015 The Northern Echo 39 Walks what’son Walks Blakey Ridge & Farndale Walk information This site may have been used for track opens out onto a field (fence Distance: 11.5 km (7.2 miles) worship since the Middle Ages as and stream bend away to your a community of Friars, known as left) – carry straight on along the Time: 3 - 4 hours the Little Brothers of The Trinity, old sunken track curving slighty Maps: OS Explorer Sheet OL26 established a house in Farndale in right heading across the top of the ‘North York Moors Western Area’ the 14th century. field and through a gateway in a Start/Parking: Little Blakey wall. After this gateway, follow the parking area – beside the road The walk sunken grassy track straight on turning to Farndale & Church From the Little Blakey parking heading down the hillside (ignore Houses, just to the south of the Lion 1area (just opposite the ‘Farndale, the gate in the wall corner towards Inn at Blakey. Grid Ref: SE 683 990 Church Houses, Feversham Arms’ the bottom of the field) to reach a road turning to the south of the gate that leads onto the road, with Refreshments: The Feversham Esk House in front of you. Arms at Church Houses and, Lion Inn at Blakey Ridge), walk nearby, the Lion Inn at Blakey across the road and take the road Ridge. turning opposite (sign ‘Farndale, Turn left along the road (take Church Houses, Feversham Arms’) 3care) and follow this road How to get there: Blakey Ridge then, after a short distance (road lies on the moorland road between (Daleside Road) for 3.3 km, passing warning sign ‘20% hill’), turn right several farms, a chapel, bunk Castleton and Hutton-le-Hole in the along the old cinder track-bed of heart of the North York Moors. house and Hall Wood (National the Rosedale Railway, marked by Trust) along the way, to eventually Terrain: Tracks and paths across a signpost ‘bridleway’ (just after reach Church Houses, opposite the heather moorland (rough and boggy the old stone railway bridge). Feversham Arms pub. terrain in one or two places). Quiet Follow this track-bed straight country roads, with a long steep on for 1.5 km then follow it as it climb back up to Blakey Ridge. sweeps round to the left around As you enter Church Houses, Caution: This walk heads across the craggy side-valley of Blakey 4follow the road to the left towards ‘Hutton-le-Hole, Castleton’ moorland with rough, boggy Gill (superb views down Farndale). then, at the road junction on the ground in places. This moorland The track-bed then gently curves edge of the village, bear right is exposed to the elements. Take round to the right and passes towards ‘Hutton-le-Hole, Gillamoor’ care walking along the roads. through a low cutting before heading straight on (with the and follow this road for 200 metres upper reaches of Farndale down then, where the road bends right, to your left) gently meandering branch left through a gate and on Points of interest in sinuous curves across the to reach the church. Walk along the Blakey Ridge is a broad ridge of Railway was built in 1861 to old track starts climbing out of moorland high above the valley gravel path to reach the entrance to heather-clad moor that divides the transport ironstone from Rosedale Farndale is called Esk House as this to reach another cutting. After the church, then continue straight valleys of Farndale to the west to Teesside, a feat of engineering route heads over the watershed into this cutting, continue straight on on along the grassy path skirting and Rosedale to the east. This that followed the contours of the Westerdale, which is how the upper along the track-bed then follow the to the left around the back of the moorland ridge provides one of the hills perfectly for 11 miles from reaches of Eskdale are known, and track as it curves round to the left church to reach a small gate in the few north-to-south routes through Rosedale, around the head of then on down through this valley to along an embankment across the far corner of the churchyard that the heart of the moors; indeed, the Farndale to Incline Top above Whitby. watershed between Farndale (left) leads out onto a field. Immediately and Westerdale (right). Midway after the small gate, turn right road across it has been in constant Ingleby Greenhow from where The upper reaches of Farndale are across the embankment you reach alongside the stream to quickly use for centuries and may even date loaded goods wagons were lowered supremely beautiful, an unspoilt a crossroads of tracks, marked reach a small gate in the field back to prehistoric times as many down a 1-in-5 incline to join the oasis of green fields and stone-built by a four-finger signpost where corner. Do NOT head through this Bronze and Iron Age relics can still main line at Battersby Junction. farms. Unbelievably, in the 1930s you turn left along a grassy track, gate but turn left immediately be found on the surrounding moors. The economic turmoil of the 1920s plans were put forward to flood the signpost ‘bridleway’, heading down before it, and walk across the field In medieval times monks travelled caused the closure of these mines upper reaches of the valley above towards Farndale (this turning is alongside the fence/wall on your this way and later the road was and the last steam engine was Church Houses as part of a huge 4.5 km from Little Blakey - Grid right and follow this all the way to used by drovers, packhorses and as lowered down the Incline in 1929 reservoir scheme to provide Hull a coach road; it was metalled in 1932 and the tracks torn up. The cinder Ref: NZ 654 007). join a road. Turn right up along the with drinking water. Thankfully, road (take care) and follow it on to and still provides an exhilarating track-bed of this old railway today the plan was thrown out by a reach a road junction where you high-level motor road over the provides a wonderful walking route, Select Committee of the House Follow this grassy track carry straight on heading steeply moors. High on the moors stands with fine views across Farndale. We of Commons after a fierce battle. 2 heading down the moorland up back to reach the parking area the famous Lion Inn, the highest follow this cinder track-bed high Church Houses is a tiny hamlet for 500 metres to reach a gate in a at Little Blakey. pub on the North York Moors. above Farndale to the watershed consisting of one or two cottages, fence, after which continue down The first part of our walk follows with Westerdale. An old track, a farm, village hall, church and the hillside alongside a small Mark Reid the old cinder track-bed of the sunken in its lower reaches, then one of the most remote pubs in the stream on your right (caution: TeamWalking Rosedale Ironstone Railway. During turns down into Farndale. This is North York Moors. Just outside the boggy ground) to reach a gate set Hill Skills, Outdoor Adventures and the 19th century this whole area an old packhorse and traders route, hamlet hidden amongst trees is the in a wall. After this gate (stream Team Events in the Great Outdoors, was a hive of industrial activity hence the reason why it has been Church of St Mary, which dates now on your left), carry straight on with Mark Reid. with numerous ironstone and coal eroded into what is known as a from 1831 when a chapel was built along the track (fence and stream teamwalking.co.uk mines. The Rosedale Ironstone ‘hollow-way’; the farm where this to serve the valley. on your left) for 60 metres then the Birdwatch By Ian Kerr T’S amazing how a sudden familiar chaffinches, were They perched tall and bold for only Once while out with friends, we Despite the unfavourable weather change in wind can almost also involved. There was also a a couple of minutes before rising watched anxiously as one exhausted conditions until Monday, there I instantly produce impressive scattering of black redstarts and, again. They climbed steeply at fieldfare dropped into the sea about was a scattering of other rare arrivals of late autumn migrants, among rarities, a Pallas’s warbler around 45 degrees until they were 100 yards offshore. It floated gull-like migrants. These may have arrived particularly northern thrushes. at Filey, the second there within a about 300 feet up before continuing for a moment and then pattered a earlier further northwards and have After five days of westerlies fortnight, and two Richard’s pipits inland. That steep climb, as if to few feet across the surface before simply been drifting southwards blocking movement across the North at Burniston. gain cruising height, is something dropping again. After a brief rest it down the coast. They included Sea from Scandinavia, the floodgates I’ve seen on many occasions with made a supreme effort and managed another Richard’s pipit at Horden, opened from Monday when the wind Many redwings and fieldfares to fly again across the rocks and fieldfares and blackbirds. which then flew southwards over swung around into the south east. seemed fit and strong after being into cover and, hopefully, safety in Castle Eden Dene, and a woodlark on the wing for up to 18 hours and The party I watched were obviously Redwings, fieldfares and lesser the dunes.