Whorlton Castle and Church from Swainby

6 miles                           Dry and chilly

We parked the cars at the roadside in Swainby near the Blacksmith's Arms.  We booted up and crossed the bridge before walking along the High Street where we turned left past the Black Horse pub into a footpath just before the church.

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

Swainby High Street

Turn left off the High Street...

... onto a track at the rear of houses

'Miner' weather vane

The path quickly leaves Swainby, which Tom Scott Burns informs us means 'Swain's Farm', from the old Norse name Sveinn, and joins a lane which takes one very quickly to the site of Whorlton Castle. We were disappointed to find the castle keep doors padlocked front and rear.  We hope this is a temporary measure as we have always enjoyed wandering around the castle ruins.

Whorlton castle - keep out!

The rear gate was also padlocked

TSB tells us that there have been a number of castles on this site, even before the Domesday Book which records it as Wirueltun in 1086. William the Conqueror gave the manor to Robert Count de Mortain, and then it passed into the hands of the de Meynell family.  The castle was surrounded by a deep moat over which was a drawbridge.  In 1323 Edward II was known to have stayed at Whorlton Castle while hunting deer in North Yorkshire and during the Cromwellian period Royalists held the castle and were bombarded by Roundheads from Whorl Hill to the East and Toft Hill to the West.

Leaving the castle we walked a few yards further along the tarmac lane to the old Saxon church of Holy Cross. There is a tale that an underground passage links the castle to this nearby church and we stopped off to have a look round.  

Holy Cross Church

The church was locked and we peered through the grill in the chancel door.  We could just see the bog oak effigy of the second Lord Nicholas de Meynell who died in 1322, as described by TSB.  Bog oak has a significantly higher density and hardness than ordinary oak and was created when prehistoric forests were submerged under water and silt in anaerobic conditions thousands of years ago.  Hence the statue still looks as good as the day it was finished. 

Bog oak effigy of Lord De Meynell

There are some very interesting tombstones dating from the early 1700s. The second one seems to have taken inspiration from the first.

'In perfect hilth he went from home, and little thought his glass was run, but dying in so short a space, I hope his soul in  a good place'

'He was an affectionate husband who lived beloved and died lamented. Oh how uncertain are the days of men. Certain to die but yet uncertain when. In perfect health I went from home, but little thought my glass so near was run. In health at night, the same at morn But before noon my glass was run.'

A modern stone with a copper embellishment

Looking towards the Chancel door

On the rear wall are two shields with coats of arms. One is nearly illegible but the other with three hands is the coat of arms of Bate of Easby.  Also on the rear of the church we noticed a medieval 'Mass Dial'.  In days when the majority of people were illiterate these would be sited on the south wall of a church and a wooden peg (called a gnomon) would have been placed in the top hole.  The Mass Dial worked as a sun dial, the shadow reaching a peg in one of the bottom holes would indicate the approximate times for mass. 

Bate of Easby to the right

Mass Dial

Ancient head

Leaving the church we returned to the lane and followed it to the junction with Whorlton Lane, where we climbed a stile into fields and headed straight towards Whorl Hill, which dominates the skyline. 

Whorl Hill

Looking back at the church and castle as we climb

A steady climb took us into the trees of Whorl Hill (old Norse 'hvirfill' - 'high hill with a rounded top') and we continued to climb until our track levelled out and we circumnavigated the hill, just inside the tree line.  

TSB informs us that in 1810 one of Britain's largest hoards of Roman silver coins (weighing 2 stones) was dug up on Whorl Hill by a local farmer whilst ploughing his field.  

We followed the path with a fine view down to Swainby through the trees, until we dropped away from the main path to exit the woods at Bank Lane via the garden of a bungalow.

Whorl Hill Farm ahead

Climbing Whorl Hill

New sign showing right of way

Circumnavigating the hill

Dropping down through beech trees

Exiting into Bank Lane

We now walked up Bank Lane towards Live Moor and Round Hill.

Reaching the trees of Faceby Plantation a short sharp climb brought us to a path below Round Hill, and here we sat to enjoy our coffee and scones.

Bank Lane

Lots of new 'Private Land' notices have appeared since our last visit

Approaching Faceby Plantation

A victim of Storm Barra blocks our path

We climb the stile and limbo under the tree

Looking back down Bank Lane to Whorl Hill

Clive starts the sharp climb to Round Hill

Our path above the plantation and below Round Hill

Coffee and scones

Finishing our break we climbed Gold Hill to reach the moor top and the stone path of the Cleveland Way.  Here we turned right and followed the Cleveland Way, soon passing a large cairn standing on a Bronze Age burial mound.

Climbing Gold Hill

Looking back to Facenby Plantation

The Cleveland Way looking east

Straight ahead is Scugdale valley

We follow the Cleveland Way west

Bronze Age burial mound

Following the ridge path across Gold Hill and Round Hill with good views down to Whorl Hill and Swainby to our right, we eventually reached the steep descent to Huthwaite Green.

Whorl Hill from Gold Hill

We begin to descend

It gets steep

Old railway truck

This steep descent is shown on the OS map as Knowles End but is known to Cleveland Way walkers as the Devil's Staircase. It is always slippery and requires care. At the bottom where the path reaches Scugdale Lane is an old railway goods truck, a remnant of the mineral railway that once ran up this valley into Scugdale.  Someone has used the truck as a firewood store.  

We crossed the lane and as we approached Hollin Hill Farm we saw a Water Board Van with a worker using a metal detector type of tool. He told us he was looking for the buried stop cock as a pipe had burst further down the valley.  We asked why he wasn't using two sticks and he laughed and said "you may laugh but every van carries a divining rod."  Seeing our disbelief he went back to the van and came out with a piece of bent copper pipe. He showed us where the underground water pipe was situated and then walked over it holding the copper pipe pointing forward.  As he crossed the water pipe the copper tube turned 180 degrees.  "Try it" he said, and offered me the pipe.  Holding it loosely as he instructed I walked forward and blow me, as I crossed the hidden pipe the tubing turned 180 degrees.  I did it another twice being careful there was no question of auto-suggestion and each time was the same.  "I can't tell you the science but it works", he said, "but the modern tool is more exact."

"What's he up to?"

I don't believe it!

I have a go...

Blow me, it works!

We said cheerio to the friendly water board man and crossed two bridges over meandering Scugdale Beck to enter fields where a faint track took us to the trees of Clain Wood.  We were a little alarmed to see that the field contained a large herd of Highland Cattle but they were very placid and paid us no attention.

Follow the Cleveland Way

Bull in field!

They show no interest in us

Clive checks the replanting going on in Clain Wood

These are the saplings they are using, look like Alder from the leaves

We followed the Cleveland Way through the woods, at times walking parallel with the dismantled railway, until we reached the tarmac of Coalmire Lane.  Here we turned right to follow the tarmac downhill to Swainby, following the road and spotting a couple of my favourite weather vanes as we entered the village.

Walking through Clain Wood

A final look at Whorl Hill

Good camo!

A favourite weather vane

A sparrowhawk watches us pass

We passed by the new Church of Holy Cross in Swainby, which was built around 1875- 1877, to replace the old church at Whorlton, and seeing it open we popped inside.  

The new Church of Holy Cross

We see the door is open..

Clive tries the bell

Leaving the church we walked back down the High Street to the Black Horse whose door was also open!  We sat at the bar and discussed a very interesting walk.

"It's open"

"To the noble art of water divining!"