THURSDAY, MAY 12, 2016 The Northern Echo 49 Walks what’son Walks Thirlby and Gormire Lake for 400m to reach Gormire Lake. Continue along the path along the wooded shoreline of the lake (with Walk information the lake on your right) then, as you reach the end of the lake, the path emerges into a small clearing Distance: 5.6 km (3.5 miles) and you come to a path junction, Time: 1 - 2 hours marked by a signpost. Turn right Maps: OS Explorer Sheet OL26 - (signpost ‘Cleaves’) and follow the always carry a map path down through woodland to re- join the lake on your right. Follow Parking: Limited parking outside this path straight on through Thirlby village, otherwise on-street woodland along the shoreline of parking. the lake to reach a fork in the path Refreshments: None en route - where you follow the left-hand bring a flask. fork, signpost ‘Cleaves’ (ignore the Terrain: Quiet country lanes and lake circuit path) gently rising up tracks; field, woodland and lakeside through woodland to reach the top paths. Some of the paths are muddy of the wooded ridge of Gormire underfoot. One stile to cross. Rigg (bluebells). Follow the path bending to the right to soon reach How to get there: From the A19 at a fork in the path, marked by a Thirsk, follow the A170 eastwards signpost, where you head down to to Sutton-under-Whitestonecliffe the left meandering down through then turn northwards along a woodland to reach a stile over a minor road to reach Thirlby. fence at the bottom of the wooded Caution: Muddy paths. LIvestock bank. in some fields. Take care walking along the roads. Cross the stile and walk up the 3small bank to emerge out onto Points of interest a field where you head straight it; underground drainage regulates carry straight on along the road the field alongside the fence/ on across the field alongside the the flow. As you may expect, many over the small bridge across Thirlby woodland on your left to reach a hedge on your right for 100 metres HIRLBY is a long village legends surround it. Local people Beck, after which continue along gate in the top corner (signpost). to reach the corner of this hedge of old stone cottages that once believed it to be bottomless the road for 125 metres to reach a Head through the gate and turn on a broad ‘ridge’ of land. Turn line a quiet road, with the whilst another story is told of fork in the lane just before a barn immediately right down along the right here along the grassy path alongside the hedge on your right, Hambleton Hills rising the Devil, dressed as the Abbot (with two doors) at Thirlby Farm. track (towards Southwoods Hall in T and follow this straight on for up to the east. There is a of Rievaulx, who lured a knight Head down to the left (signpost) the distance), through a gate and 125 metres to reach a bridlegate particularly delightful spot beside on horseback to his death over passing between the houses and then the track levels out – carry in a fence, after which continue the ford across Thirlby Beck, the crags above the lake at a spot farm buildings along the lane/track on along the track gently curving down alongside the hedge for a where you will find a bench with still known as White Mare Crag, to soon reach a gate that leads out round to the right to join a hedge/ the inscription… “No shop or inn the other name for Whitestone fence on your left, which you follow further 175 metres to reach another onto a field (waymarker). After the bridlegate that leads onto a grassy is there here about, so why not sit Cliff. The lake is surrounded by gate, follow the rutted grassy track straight on passing a pond down to down and enjoy summat for nowt!” semi-natural woodland that is now your right to reach a bridlegate at track with the gardens and barns straight on then curving up to the of Cleaves House on your left. Thirlby was once the home of Alf protected as a Nature Reserve; left (track peters out) to reach a the end of the field that leads onto Wight, more famously known as look out for carpets of bluebells, a crossroads of tracks and lanes at Follow this grassy track straight gate in the top corner of the field on (passing Cleaves House) to join James Herriot the world-famous wood sorrel, forget-me-not, ramson, (where a fence joins a hedge). Head the entrance to Southwoods Hall vet and author. From Thirlby, our celendine, stitchwort, garlic (this crossroads is known as Midge a road. Turn left along the road through the gate and walk on for and follow it for 900 metres back walk heads across fields to reach mustard and red campion. Please a couple of paces then turn right Holm Gate). Southwoods Hall, set magnificently to reach the ford at Thirlby – the do not pick any wild flowers. through a gate and kissing-gate in beneath Whitestone Cliff. This ford can be by-passed by following quick succession out onto a larger grand house was once the home At the crossroads of tracks the road to the right just before the field. Walk straight on across this of Donald Sinclair, otherwise 2and lanes, head straight on ford then left back over the small The walk field alongside the hedge on your along the track ahead through known as Siegfried Farnon, James bridge that leads into the centre of right for 175 metres then follow a gate (blue waymarker), and Herriot’s veterinarian partner. Thirlby. From the wooden Village Hall the hedge bending sharp right, then follow the clear track gently 1in the centre of Thirlby (with after which carry straight on for a rising up for 750 metres to reach a Mark Reid A woodland track leads from your back to the hall), turn right further 200 metres to reach a small junction of lanes and tracks beside Walking Weekends 2016 Southwoods Hall to reach Gormire along the road to soon reach a road barn. Head through the gate to Southwoods Lodge (house). At Peak District, Yorkshire Dales, Lake, which has a dramatic location junction (main road sweeps round the right just before the barn, and track/lane junction, head to the Lake District & Snowdonia beneath the cliffs of Sutton Bank to the left towards ‘Boltby’) where continue straight on with the hedge left along the track (‘Bridleway walkingweekenders.co.uk to Gormire’) up into woodland and Whotestone Cliff. This lake you take the road turning straight now on your left, across the top Unique corporate activity days, to soon reach a junction of paths was formed during the last Ice on passing the Wren Cabinet of the field (ignore track heading navigation skills and team building (three-finger signpost). Head to Age when a landslide blocked a Makers (‘No Through Road’ sign). down to the right) to reach a stile experiences in the great outdoors. the right and follow this clear meltwater channel and is unique as Where this road forks after a short in the far top corner of the field. teamwalking.co.uk it has no streams feeding or leaving distance (with a ford to your right) After the stile, bear left across gravel path through Garbutt Wood closer than Eastern Europe and close relative of our own familiar three pairs of ospreys are now Birdwatch By Ian Keer Russia while whiskered terns nest robins. The immature harrier settled on eggs. A fourth pair has mainly around the Mediterranean was seen at both Long Nab at occupied another nest site but so and in isolated pockets further Burniston and at Wykeham far have not produced eggs. HE arrival at last of some and strong arrivals of our rarest east and northwards. The Lakes. The bluethroat at Filey real sunny, warm spring species, roseate terns, at Coquet Saltholme birds provided the first was undoubtedly bound for T weather has led to a big Island. records for Cleveland since 2010. breeding grounds in Scandinavia. influx of common summer But for many birders the main Their appearance coincided with Bluethroats are among the classic visitors, while the persistent attraction of the past few days a good run up the coast of the May rarities although numbers easterly airflow has produced a more regular black terns. The two have fallen sharply in recent has been the appearance of range of exciting rarities. rarer species may well have been years. It would be wonderful to some stunning spring rarities, caught up in movements of these think that this individual is the Swallows, willow warblers and drifted across the North Sea by whitethroats have increased black terns from the wintering start of a little run of them along those light but steady easterly areas which they share in Africa. the coast. Other rarities included sharply as birds which had winds. Among them were two lingered further south have taken Other eastern and northern five spoonbills at Saltholme, a species of marsh terns. Two species included a citrine wagtail stone curlew at Seamer Carrs advantage of the conditions to white-winged black terns briefly move in, and take up breeding at Seaton Common and a thrush and another southern species, a graced Hurworth Burn while two territories. On the coast, there nightingale on the Farne Islands. hoopoe, at Haltwhistle. whiskered terns which arrived has been a similarly large influx North Yorkshire had two Ospreys, presumably non- at Saltholme on Sunday and were of terns arriving at regular highly-prized rarities.