Hawnby Hill and Hazel Head from Hawnby

7 miles                    Sunny and breezy

Today's walk from Hawnby is one of our favourite Tom Scott Burns' walks and as it is nearly a year since we last walked this route we decided it was time for a re-visit.  We arrived at Hawnby from the B1257 Stokesley to Helmsley road via the Laskill turn off and parked at the roadside near the Inn at Hawnby.

Today's walk from The Walker's Guide to the Hambleton Hills

The Inn at Hawnby

The village sits under Hawnby Hill (298m) whose twin Easterside Hill can be seen over towards the B1257.   These two hills, known as Corallian Outliers, once formed part of the Tabular Hills and have a very distinctive shape.  We left the road opposite the Inn and immediately started to climb across a field, fighting through high bracken until we reached the top of Hawnby Hill. From here there is a good view in all directions, to the left down to Arden Hall and to the right, Easterside Hill.  It was pleasant to identify places we had visited on previous walks as we strolled along the ridge of  Hawnby Hill.  

Beginning the climb from Hawnby village

We soon enter dense bracken

Into trees for a short while...

... before climbing to the ridge of Hawnby Hill

Looking back towards Hawnby

Looking east towards Easterside Hill

A pleasant ridge walk

 

Cairn on Hawnby Hill at 978'

As we walked along the ridge we came to a neatly built cairn, so neat in fact that Clive and I suspect it to be the work of one person.  We passed it by and coming to the end of the ridge we descended to the moor gate and the purple heather of Hawnby Moor.

Dropping down towards the moor gate

Sign at moor gate

We passed through the Moor Gate and walked along the sandy path of Sunley Slack and after about a mile came to a fork in the road.  We took the left fork and followed the path, seemingly walking straight towards Bilsdale Mast.  To our right was Round Hill which is simply a collection of rocks and a bump in the heather. Just by this we saw a wooden post with a yellow way mark pointing left away from our track, across the moor towards Hazel Head Woods whose tree tops could just be made out on the horizon.  Although the way mark pointed the way we must go there was no sign whatsoever of any track, an experience which was to be repeated several times on this walk.  Obviously the area isn't being walked very much which is a real shame as it has so much variety.  

Looking back from Sunley Slack at Hawnby Hill

Marching through the heather

The irregular mound of Round Hill at 964'

Deciding on the best route across the heather

We find a track of sorts

We dropped down from Hawnby Moor towards the trees of Hazel Head Wood.  The path was very indistinct and a bit boggy but ahead of us we saw the ruins of an old building which Tom Scott Burns informs us was a Wesleyan Chapel which must have taken its congregation from the people who occupied the buildings, now ruins, that are hidden among trees in Hazel Head Wood.  The chapel was a bit further on but we decided to go and have a look at it.  There is nothing to report, however, except nettles, but it was in the sun and sheltered so we sat in front of it and enjoyed our coffee and scones.

Disused chapel

We passed several large ants nests....

.... seething with busy ants

Nothing but nettles but...

... a nice view to enjoy with our coffee

We retraced our steps to the gate into Hazel Head Wood and found that the paths of last year were hidden in long grass.  We made our way past the ruins of High Hazel Heads Farm and other ruins that pre-dated the woods, then made our way through tree stumps towards the Osmotherly to Hawnby road, which we reached just near the Hazel Heads Car Park and information board.

Gate to Hazel Head Woods

Ruins in the woods

What was once a way marked path leads us to the road

A short walk along tarmac

We turned left into the road and followed it to a stile into Ellers Wood.  We walked along a wide forestry path, quickly losing height and eventually leading us to the River Rye, where we searched for the footbridge mentioned by TSB.  We eventually found it but had to fight our way through bracken and brambles to reach the bridge, which is obviously little used.

Leaving the road into Ellers Wood

Saplings hide the path

Through here to the bridge!

The Bridge Over the River Rye

The path through Ellers Wood is not being used and saplings and brambles are encroaching along its route; if they are not cut back the path will disappear in a couple of years.  

We followed our track alongside a beck and then into the trees of Blueberry Wood before dropping down past St Agnes House and Half Moon Plantation.  This whole area was wick with young pheasants which ran along the path in front of us.  There were feeders every few yards and occasionally we saw gruesome totems where keepers had strung up dead crows to discourage unwelcome diners.

Keeper's quad but no sign of the owner

To the left, Hawnby Hill and Easterside Hill byond

Lazy rams at St Agnes House

Female pheasant..

.. and male by a feeder

Dead crow totem

Passing St Agnes House farm we dropped down to a nice ford where we crossed a footbridge into Low Wood.  Soon we came to the attractive arched bridge over the Rye, not mentioned by TSB as it post dates his book.  

The arched bridge over the Rye appears ahead of us

View downstream from the bridge

A short scramble up from the bridge brought us to woodland near  Carr House and we turned right to follow way marks (but no path) through several fields until we rejoined the Hawby road where we walked into the village and into the Inn at Hawnby.

Across fields from Carr House

We regain a spring in our step

Through a glass darkly.  The view from the beer garden

Looking across at Hawnby from the beer garden