Kepwick and Cowesby from Over Silton
5.5 miles Fine but very cold
We left the cars at Over Silton at the roadside opposite the Old School House, having approached the village from the A19.
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| Today's walk from The Walker's Guide to the Hambleton Hills |
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| We parked opposite the old school house |
Tom Scott Burns notes that the name Silton probably derives from Sal as in Upsal, which means Hall, and Ton, which is old Anglian for place or town.
We followed the road out of Over Silton passing the Manor House, which TSB tells us was once owned by the gallant gentleman Sir George Orby Wombwell, baronet, who served with the 17th Lancers and took part in the charge of the Light Brigade at Balaclava on 25th October 1854. His horse was shot from under him and he was taken prisoner but escaped on a Russian horse to rejoin his brigade and charge again, without sword or pistol! He died in 1913 aged 81.
We soon turned into a field at a gate. Although easy to miss, there is a way-mark on the telegraph pole here, but we found that with much of today's route, whilst shown on the map, where its tracks cut across fields it is difficult to see.
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| Manor House, Over Silton |
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| George Orby Wombwell |
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| The Wombwell coat of arms |
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| In the distance the Pennines have a covering of snow |
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| Turn off the road into a field track |
We walked through fields and crossed Penny Beck, soon reaching Greystone Farm. We passed by the attractive and tidily kept buildings to see a small open barn full of rosettes and prize certificates for the farm's Suffolk sheep.
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| Crossing Penny Beck |
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| ... to reach Greystone Farm |
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| Tidy Greystone Farm |
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| The Silton Flock prizes |
The route continues along field paths until reaching Nether Silton where we crossed the road near to the village green and rejoined our path which led us to Hall Farm.
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| Young Suffolk tups at Greystone Farm |
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| 16th Century Silton Hall, modernised in 1838 |
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| A magnicent Lime tree dominates Silton Green |
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| Storm damage at Hall Farm |
We saw several trees down in today's walk, the victims of recent storms. The first we came across had caused considerable damage to ourbuildings at Hall Farm. We continued beyond the farm to walk through sodden fields until we reached the footbridge over Sorrow Beck.
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| Crossing Sorrow Beck |
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| More storm damage, this tree completely blocking the bridleway, a detour was necessary |
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| Railway bridge |
After crossing the beck we walked through fields to reach a stone footbridge that is built over what used to be a 3.5 mile narrow gauge railway. Constructed in 1833 this railway brought limestone mined near Kepwick to kilns near to the Yarm and Thirsk turnpike road. We crossed another field and joined Peasland Lane which we followed for a mile into Cowesby.
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| Looking over to Pen Hill and our return route |
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| Cowesby and its church from the road |
The first building we came to on entering Cowesby was St Michael and All Angels Church. We were pleased to find the door was unlocked and we spent a few moments exploring the old building. We were surprised to see it had also been a victim of the storms and had lost its weather vane, which had embedded itself in the earth behind the church.
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| St Michael and all angels, we notice something's missing |
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| Christmas decorations to the font |
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| Looking towards the front of the church |
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| Clive checks out the damp |
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| The altar window |
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| We discover the weather vane |
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| That's fixed, just have to climb onto the roof now... |
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| Time for coffee and scones |
Although the present church dates from only 1846 it replaced one of the oldest churches in the district, which stood on a Saxon site. It is now suffering badly with damp. The tower has an unusual pyramid roof which houses a ring of six bells, their ropes dangling near the altar.
We paused here to enjoy our coffee before walking through Cowesby and past Home Farm, then followed a path bearing left along the western shoulder of Pen Hill. This path then leads down towards Kepwick.
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| Estate houses |
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| Owl weather vane at Cowesby |
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| Looking back to Cowesby from the climb to Pen Hill |
Tom Scott Burns in his The Walker's Guide to the Hambleton Hills mentions that a marble obelisk can be seen on Howe Hill as one descends Atlay Bank and last year we found the obelisk hidden in dense tree planting. We decided to revisit the obelisk and as we walked towards it we came upon a farmer chopping up a fallen Ash tree and asked him about the hidden monument.
He told us that he had Glen Side Farm and we were on his land. He said the memorial was to John Warner of Kepwick Hall and that Kepwick Estate had planted the trees which now hid it from view. He said his father remembered more steps up to the obelisk, now probably buried. Although Kepwick Estates still own the hill they have sold much of the land including the house and field below Howe Hill. He told us he was sure there had been a footpath (which is shown on the OS map running below the hill) but that it had fallen into disuse. We were welcome to walk up to the hill on his land but may be on private land once we climbed towards the obelisk.
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| Disused quarries on Pen Hill |
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| Howe Hill and its hidden obelisk to the left |
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| We chat to the friendly farmer |
We walked up the farmer's field below Howe Hill and stepping over a low fence we climbed the hill through dense vegetation before reaching the obelisk. No longer a gleaming marble pillar it is now green with moss and its base is being undermined by tree roots. We feel this is a shame and part of our region's history is disappearing through neglect.
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| Climbing Howe Hill |
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| Nearly there |
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| "We are not born for ourselves alone" |
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| 'A nature his of sweet felicity, a pioneer of thought throughout the globe, his soul a garb of grand simplicity, that feelings true of wondrous depth did robe. Such men denote the capability, of nature's glorious power in her prime, show us the path of possibility, that leads beyond the measured scope of time' |
John Henry Boyer Warner erected Kepwick Hall and constructed two reservoirs upon the moors above to service the estate and village.
There was no easy descent and we slithered back down Howe Hill and returned to the road.
Here we looked at the privately owned chapel which unfortunately is locked to the public but has an interesting history.
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| Kepwick chapel |
Originally this building was a mission room but was rebuilt as a chapel by the Warner family of Kepwick Hall, whose only son was shot down during WWI whilst serving with the RFC against Baron Richthofen's flying circus.
Interestingly Warner's late sister formed the basis of one of James Herriot's characters, Mrs Pumphries, who owned the pekingese Tricky Woo.
We left Kepwick at a footpath sign to re-enter fields which took us first to the disused railway and then to Bridge Beck which we crossed on a new bridge. A hundred yards later we reached and crossed Sorrow Beck.
In pathless fields way-marks are few and far between, but keep straight ahead to the outskirts of Nether Silton and the old Manor Stone which is in the middle of a field next to the 16th century manor house. The stone is cryptically inscribed with letters whose meaning I've set out below the photograph. This inscription was the idea of a Squire Hicks to mark the spot where the medieval manor house once stood.
It's become something of a ritual that Clive takes my photo at this spot, showing how the passage of time erodes both the Manor Stone and myself.
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| We're wearing well. |
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Here The Grand Old Manor House Stood The Black Beams Were Oak, The Great Walls Were Good The Walls At The East Wing Are Hidden Here A Thatched Cottage Like A Barn Was Erected
Year AD 1765 A Wide Porch Spans A Yard And Alcove |
A few steps took us to the church of All Saints and we popped inside for a look around.
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| All Saints, Nether Silton |
All Saints is a chapel of ease which was rebuilt in 1812. Such a chapel is built for the convenience of parishioners who would find it difficult to access the main church, in this case isolated St Mary's which we would pass by shortly.
Tom Scott Burns explains that wood used in the altar rails and other refurbishments was presented by a R M Jaques, and were from HMS Dreadnought of Lord Nelson's day.
We left the church and immediately turned off the road at a white gate opposite, just near to the post box, leading to a narrow passage that takes us between houses to open fields.
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| Through the white gate... |
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| ... to open fields |
Once in the fields we were now returning to Over Silton and walking parallel to Greystone Farm and its Suffolk sheep.
After crossing the tarmac of Kirk Ings Lane we passed St Mary's Church, which appears abandoned in the middle of a field, before walking over the field to Over Silton and the end of our walk.
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| Isolated St Mary's at Over Silton |
A short drive took us Osmotherley where we discussed today's short but interesting walk over a pint.
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| "To 2022 and good walking!" |
