The Drove Road and Windygill Ridge from Boltby
7 miles Wet!
We drove through Boltby and parked at a hard shoulder on the right hand side of the road. As we got out of our cars it started to rain heavily so we got straight into wet weather gear. After booting up we continued walking uphill along the same road, away from the village, until turning left at a footpath sign into a farm track to Lunshaw House Farm.
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| Today's walk from The Walker's Guide to the Hambleton Hills |
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| View over to High Barn from the car park |
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| Turn left towards Lunshaw Farm |
Before reaching the farm we crossed a stile on the right to follow a field path signposted Low Paradise. Our path followed the camber of the hill for some time, which meant walking at an awkward 45 degree angle, until it dropped down into woods before Lunshaw Beck.
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| Leave the road here |
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| Follow the sign to paradise.. |
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| ... which is wet today |
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| Aim for the woods |
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| Fight through the bracken |
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| Drop down to Lunshaw Beck |
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| Low Paradise Farm appears in the distance |
Crossing the beck we started a mile long ascent which TSB accurately describes as a 'muscular climb'. We passed by the always well ordered Low Paradise Farm and continued to climb to reach Oak Cottage.
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| On the 'muscular' climb to Low Paradise |
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| Low Paradise Farm |
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| New to us, weather vane at Low Paradise |
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| Oak Beck Cottage |
The track continues past Oak Beck cottage to climb relentlessly upwards until reaching High Paradise Farm, but would their tea room be open in these troubled times? The answer was... sort of.
A chuck wagon was standing at the rear of the farm buildings and here you could buy coffee and food. Nearby were picnic tables and chairs but in today's torrential rain the masked assistant took pity on us and told us to return to the old cafe where we would find tables under cover, and this we did.
The scones and coffee were as good as ever and as we ate we watched birds, who had obviously made the most of the cafe being closed, attending their chicks in nooks and crannies around the cafe.
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| After Oak Beck cottage we are on the Cleveland Way |
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| Looking down towards Boltby |
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| Looks promising! |
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| High Paradise Farm |
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| Hens making the most of the bird feeders |
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| "...then I just add a smidgen of butter and jam and then ... am I boring you?" |
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| Pied wagtail babies getting too big for their nest |
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| A crush at High Paradise |
We enjoyed a leisurely stop sheltering from the rain at High Paradise but eventually it was time to move on.
Leaving the farm we walked towards Sneck Gate and the moor. Passing through the gate we were now on the Hambleton Drove Road, which we followed left, soon reaching forest.
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| Young tup at High Paradise |
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| On the Hambleton Drove Road |
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| Entering Boltby Forest |
We walked on through the trees for some time and then, just before reaching the ruins of Steeple Cross (first mentioned in 1246 but no longer a cross, now just a 2 feet high piece of stone) we turned left to enter the plantation's trees.
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| Turn left here, just before Steeple Cross |
We walked through the forestry plantation and emerged at Gallow Hill where there was a view through misty rain towards Cowesby village far below.
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| View from Gallow Hill |
We turned left at Gallow Hill and followed the broad path to Windygill Ridge. To the left of the path is a forestry plantation and ahead a view across the Vale of Mowbray, while to the right Black Hambleton and the hummock of Seta Pike are visible.
