Rievaulx Abbey and Caydale from Murton

8.5 miles      Wet and cold with a blustery wind

We parked in the same spot as last week, on the roadside near Murton Grange.  We set off walking past Murton Grange and turned left into a cart track known as Ox Pasture Lane.  After a while thick blackthorn hedges protected us from the north wind and gusts of rain.  Pheasants and partridges were sheltering in the lee of the hedges and took to the air as we approached except for one little partridge that sat, head bowed, looking very sorry for itself.  We walked up to it and I took a photograph; its eyes were closed and it looked very ill.  Clive said he had better put it out of its misery and as he reached out to take hold of it the partridge's eyes opened, it squawked in alarm and set off at speed, zig-zagging along the path before taking to the air.  Presumably it had been asleep and because of the wind hadn't heard us until Clive spoke!

Tom Scott Burn's map of today's walk from The Walker's Guide to the Hambleton Hills

 On Ox Pasture Lane

Blackthorn hedges along Ox Pasture Lane

Ill?  Dying?  No, just dozing..

Our path continued alongside Deep Gill Wood and then gradually descended into the Rye Valley giving us nice views down to Barnclose Farm where we joined a tarmac farm track that led past Tylas Farm.

Deep Gill Wood

Looking down at the Rye Valley

 Toadstools in Deep Gill Wood

 As we leave the woods we get a surprise view of Easterside Hill in the distance

We left the road and a narrow track took us alongside the River Rye.  This track had become very muddy in the rain and at one point neat boarding had been laid to walk alongside the river.  We came to Bow Bridge and crossed the river and walked past the old quarry shown as Penny Piece Quarry, where the limestone was excavated for Rievaulx Abbey in the 12th century.  The monks dammed the river here and diverted the water into a canal which carried the stone on barges to the site. The canal is still clearly visible although full of bushes and shrubs.  It was narrower than I had expected, only about 10 feet or so across.

 Walking along Oxen Dale, the River Rye to the left

 Neat boarding helped our progress

Bow Bridge

 We join the Inn Way 

                                                           Our first view of Rievaulx Abbey

Rievaulx came into view and looked splendid when approached from this direction.  We eventually reached Rievaulx Village and found ourselves a low stone wall to sit on whilst we enjoyed our coffee and scones, looking across at the Abbey.  The sun even shone for a while to celebrate the occasion.

A beautiful approach to the Abbey

The village of Rievaulx

                                                       The view from our coffee spot

We walked along the tarmac road out of the village with views of the Abbey to our left.  We crossed Rievaulx Bridge and started to walk on the other side of the river, still on the road, to Ashberry Farm.  The path left the road here and went behind the farm and around the base of Ashbery Hill where Tom Scott Burns notes there is a 'stunning view of the monastery' below.  Unfortunately new conifer growth prevented us from enjoying Tom's view and this growth accompanied us all along this stretch until well past the point where a view of the abbey was possible.

Rievaulx Bridge

Views of Ashberry Farm

We continued along this path for some distance.  Crossing a cattle grid Clive pointed out that it was made of narrow gauge railway lines.  We have seen several cattle grids like this, some still showing the bolt holes where they had been joined together.  This is a legacy of all the quarrying in the area where rail track was used to move the minerals and it was pleasing to see materials being re-used for other purposes.   We walked alongside the quaintly named Lambert Hagg Wood before rejoining the farm road near to Tylas Farm and retracing our outward journey for a while before heading left into Birk Bank Wood.  Horses had been ridden through these woods and our track was a quagmire made even worse by the persistent rain.  We came out of the woods and rejoined the road at a ford next to Caydale Mill.  We washed the mud off our boots in the ford before following the road steeply uphill for a while and then onwards to Murton Grange.  As we passed last week's wall repairs a rainbow appeared over Murton Grange; the end of the rainbow seemed to be just where Clive had parked his car.  There was to be no pot of gold in his car however, just our muddy boots.

Cattle grid made from narrow gauge rail track

 Leaving Lambert Hagg Wood

Entering Birk Bank Wood

Cleaning boots at the ford

A rainbow at Murton Grange

Caydale and Noddle End from Murton

7.5 miles   Misty and cool

We left Middlesbrough in fine weather but as we drove up Clay Bank we entered low cloud which remained with us for most of the walk.  We passed Hawnby and drove up Murton Bank, parking on the roadside at Murton Grange.

 

Tom Scott Burns' map of today's walk

 Murton Grange Farm

Leaving the car we walked past Murton Grange Farm along Murton Heights.  We had no views in the low mist but noticed neat repairs to the roadside dry stone walls and soon came on the man responsible, sitting in the back of his van having a cigarette. He got out to chat and after we had enquired if the stone was limestone he gave us a brief lesson in the art.  He explained how the wall was tapered so that it wouldn't hold water that would allow ice to form and force the wall apart.  He told us that the wall settled over time and so had to be built on a firm surface, but not too hard or it wouldn't settle properly.  He had his own small quarry and had dug out the stone he was working on that very morning and would be finished this section in two hours.

 A brief lesson in the art of dry stone walling

We walked on and turned right into a tarmac road at Wethercote Lane, passing Wethercote Farm which we could make out only dimly through the mist..  Eventually we reached Boltby Scar and joined the Cleveland Way. We should have enjoyed a panoramic view but could see nothing.  We found a sheltered spot next to an old quarry and enjoyed our coffee and scones.  While we ate the mist slowly lifted and we could make out the shape of  High Barn ahead of us.

 We join the Cleveland Way

 Coffee and High Barn appears in the distance

 Looking down on the old quarry from our coffee stop

 Approaching High Barn

We followed the Cleveland Way past High Barn where there should have been a view of Boltby Village and entered part of Boltby Wood where we found a sad looking horse standing in our path.   He ignored us as we approached, looking disconsolate in the damp mist and we stopped to talk to him.  Clive found a couple of fruit shortcake biscuits left over from our coffee break and they were gratefully received and we felt he was looking more cheerful when we left him.

 Entering Boltby Wood

 A horse on our path

Horses like fruit shortcake biscuits

We continued along the Cleveland Way for some time until we eventually reached High Paradise Farm which was a nicely kept farm, everything looking tidy and pleasing to the eye.  As we walked through the farm we noticed there were some fancy hens and a sow and piglets running free in a small field.

 Dry Stone wall at High Paradise Farm

Just beyond the farm we crossed the Hambleton Drove Road and passed through the moor gate onto Dale Town Common.  The track gradually lost height by Gowerdale Bank and then as we arrived at an old ruined barn at Noddle End the mist had lifted sufficiently for us to enjoy a great view of Dale Town in the hollow below.

 Dale Town Common

Gowerdale Bank

The view from Noddle End

 Derelict Gowerdale House

We walked past the derelict Gowerdale House and climbed out of the hollow to Dale Town which was once a thriving medieval village but is now a single farmhouse.  A stiff climb from the farm took us left along Peak Scar Top and then to Murton Bank Road and our car.

Looking down at Dale Town Farm from Peak Scar Top, Hawnby Hill and Easterside Hill in the distance

The weather had improved as the day went on but we decided that this is a walk we must do again as we missed a lot in bad visibility during the first half.  It is also worth remembering as a good wet weather walk as there are good paths throughout the distance.