Walking in North Yorkshire

Rievaulx Abbey and Caydale from Murton

9.7 miles Dry, grey and still

Leaving the B1257 Stokesley to Helmsley Road at the Hawnby turn off we parked by the roadside near to the buildings of Murton Grange, overlooking the village of Hawnby below.

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

Tom Scott Burns explains in his 'Walker's Guide to the Hambleton Hills' that the township of Murton was given to Byland Abbey by Hugh Malebisse in the 12th century. A grange was constructed by lay brothers and was basically a well organised farm with a small chapel.

Murton Grange

Just past the Grange we turned into Ox Pasture Lane to walk alongside Deep Gill Wood. We followed this lane for nearly two miles, eventually leaving the woods at a farm gate and crossing cow fields to an old barn.

Turn left past the Grange into Ox Pasture Lane

Ox pasture Lane

Lots of fungi to be seen today

If you look hard you can see a deer ahead, it turned off before I could zoom

The farmer keeps the cattle occupied

After the barn swing to the right hand side of the big tree

Immediately after the barn we left the field edge to bear right across the pasture to reach a gate, after which we descended to Barnclose Farm.

Descending to Barnclose Farm

Hen and chick at Barnclose

Friendly dog at Barnclose Farm

Leaving Barnclose Farm we had a steady climb on tarmac to reach Tylas Farm, usually hidden from view by foliage but today visible after recent hedge cutting. TSB tells us it was built by the monks of Old Byland as a grange and tile house, hence its name.

Tylas Farm

Oxendale in its Autumn colours

We passed Tylas Farm and continued along the tarmac lane to Oxendale until we reached a gate on our left, where we turned off the road to gradually descend to the River Rye.

Leave the lane at the gate

... and walk through Oxendale

Boardwalk along the River Rye

The path now leads through the valley of Oxendale with the River Rye on the left. We followed a pleasant grassy track which became a boardwalk over areas that obviously suffer from flooding.

We emerged onto tarmac and almost immediately crossed the river at Bow Bridge, originally built by the Cistercian monks of Rievaulx. A short walk on the road brought us to a sign pointing to our path across fields to Rievaulx Abbey. We left the road at a wooden Inn Way sign and soon the Abbey came into sight.

Note the yellow plastic handle now often used to signify waymarks

Ancient Bow Bridge

Re-enter fields at the Inn Way sign

Our route across the fields follows the traces of the old canal built by monks in the 11th century to carry stone for the Abbey from the nearby Penny Piece Quarry, so named because quarry men were apparently paid a penny a day. The river was dammed here and water diverted into the canal.

Clive looking along the embankments of of the old canal

As we walked through fields towards the abbey we were rewarded with a fine view of the ruins. Tom Scott Burns says that Rievaulx Abbey is undoubtedly a place to walk to, rather than from. He explains the name Rievaulx is from old French for Valley of the Rye. Under its third abbot, Aelred (to whom the walk signposted earlier refers), the monastery had 640 men dependent on its Cistercian order.

Cow fields towards Rievaulx Abbey

The bull ignores our presence

The abbey ruins appear in the distance

Nearly at Rievaulx, passing Mill Cottage

We walked uphill through the village and stopped at a public bench to refresh ourselves with coffee and scones, before resuming the climb to reach the Slipper Chapel of St Mary's. This was a place where pilgrims would remove their shoes and put on soft slippers or socks to enter the holy buildings of the Abbey. It was renovated early in the twentieth century.

That looks like a good spot..

... for coffee and scones

We found the church unlocked and entered to find a neat, well kept building with a fine altar window.

St Mary's Church

Looking towards the altar

Altar window

The house opposite the church...

.. has an interesting sundial. "The Shadow shows the Light"

Walking back from the Slipper Church we passed a lady thatcher at work. She told us she was re-thatching the ridge, not the whole roof, and then a couple of houses further along, another roofer was at work.

This looks interesting.

The thatcher breaks off to chat for a few minutes

"I can see your house from here"

We set off once more, down through the village and past the Abbey ruins to Rievaulx Bridge. TSB tells how Wordsworth's sister, Dorothy, who, arriving here during a July afternoon, described how she "could have stayed in this solemn, quiet spot till evening without a thought of moving, but William was waiting for me."

TSB explains that the Abbey sits in a natural amphitheatre which was granted to the Cistercian monks by the Lord of Helmsley, and building began in 1132. Because of the Abbey's site between a hill and the River Rye the church faces North - South instead of the usual East - West. By 1200 there were 140 monks and 500 lay brothers but like nearby Byland Abbey, it was suppressed in 1538.

Mill House and the Abbey behind

Rievaulx Abbey

We walked past the Visitors' Centre to reach Rievaulx Bridge which we crossed, following the road to pretty Ashberry Farm, where there were some rare English Longhorn cattle. Here the path turns behind the building and immediately starts to climb Ashberry Hill.

Rievaulx Bridge

Longhorn Cattle

Ashberry Farm pond

Ashberry Farm

Reaching Ashberry Farm buildings we turned left through a white gate and followed the wooded path through Lambert Hagg Wood. We had occasional views of the Abbey through saplings and above it, the Ionic Temple built by a local squire in 1758.

The Ionic Temple folly can be seen on the right of the photo

Ionic Temple

We left the wood on the same road that we had followed on the outward route, past Tylas Farm. We left the road just before reaching the farm, turning left onto a rough track that runs along Birk Bank.

Approaching Tylas Farm

Along Birk Bank

Saplings now obscure the view along Birk Bank but a few years ago we stood here and watched rutting deer on the other side of the valley. See here.

Our view here in 2019

The path meanders in and out of trees from about the midway point of Birk Bank until, after about 2.5 miles it finally reaches Caydale Mill, just seen in the trees below.

Renovation works at Caydale Mill

Passing the mill to join the road

Just beyond the mill we reached the road and a ford where we washed the mud from our boots.

This unusually long ford is often shown in the Yorkshire Vet and cars using this lane must drive through 100 yards of water. Walkers cross by a bridge however, so can avoid getting wet feet, rejoining the road at the other side of the ford.

Clive takes the bridge to the right of the ford

The other end, water feeding the ford comes from the Rills of Caydale

Beyond the ford the lane becomes a very steep (1:4) climb for about half a mile, before eventually levelling out. After over eight miles of walking this climb is a test for the legs! Eventually the buildings of Murton Grange appeared in the distance and we were back at the car.

Murton is just above the village of Hawnby where just a few minutes later we could be found inside The Owl discussing today's walk over a well earned pint of beer.