Kildale to Baysdale and its Lost Abbey

 

9 miles                                       Sun and Cloud

We parked in Kildale at the side of the road and left the village towards Little Kildale.

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

Tom Scott Burns informs us that Kildale is a village of great antiquity.  There are several 'Kildals' in Norway and the village was probably named by the Vikings.  It was called Childale in the Domesday Book.   In 1156, where the church now stands, was a wooden castle built by the Percys, Earls of Northumberland.  Walking through the village we turned off the road towards Little Kildale and passed through a couple of sheep fields before reaching Little Kildale Wood and then on to Warren Farm, where Clive had spent a happy summer holiday when a schoolboy.

Memorial stone near to Kildale Hall

The Old Rectory, Kildale

Walking towards Little Kildale

Pheasants lead us along the road

Following our path past Warren Farm we came to a large square chimney as we descended to Leven Vale.  This is the remains of an ironstone mine that was operational between 1866 and 1874.  Crossing the River Leven, whose source was just to our right, we started a climb up through meadows towards Kildale Moor. 

Leaving Warren Farm towards Kildale Moor

Ironstone Mine chimney

Passing the moor gate

Looking back towards Warren Farm

We climbed steadily to Kildale Moor and having reached the top at 900 feet, we started to descend towards Baysdale Beck, soon reaching the remains of an old barn where our path turned sharp left.  

Our track, which runs parallel to Baysdale Beck, is an old lime road that enabled limestone to be carried from Commondale into Cleveland, which we followed for 1.5 miles until we reached a tarmac road.

As we walked we watched a team of workers on the moor making their way through the thick bracken and heather aided by a vehicle.  They appeared to be spraying the bracken and we didn't envy them their job.  It must be difficult ground to walk through all day.

Crossing Kildale Moor

Descending to the old farm buildings near Baysdale Beck

We turn left and follow the old lime road

Bracken spraying

On reaching the road we turned right and walked downhill to the pretty ford at Hob Hole where we selected a flat rock to sit and enjoy our coffee and scones.  As it was 11am and still within the school holidays we were surprised to find the beauty spot deserted.

A nice spot for a little something

The ford at Hob Hole

Looking back as we leave

Hob Hole was supposed to be the haunt of a mischievous hobgoblin who taunted weary travellers and TSB reports a Canon Atkinson speaking of Padfoot,  "Padfoot, a precursor of death; sometimes visible, sometimes invisible, but ever and anon padding lightly in the rear of people, then again before them or at their side, and uttering a roar unlike the voice of any known animal."   

Fortunately there was no sign of Padfoot today and we ate our scones in peace before crossing the ford and heading steeply up the tarmac road, then turning into John Breckon Road.  As we walked along this narrow road we had fine views over towards Westerdale.

Steep uphill from Hob Hole

Turning right into John Breckon Road

Looking down towards Westerdale from John Breckon Road

After half a mile or so we turned off John Breckon Road onto a heather track that returned us back along the opposite side of Baysdale Beck, passing a memorial to Alan Clegg 'Who loved these moors'.  We arrived at Great Hograh Beck where there is a small stone footbridge and a wooden memorial seat, noting that another commemorative brass plaque has been added to the bench since we last passed this way.   

TSB says that the footbridge was built in 1938, according to an inscription, and was the work of Rowland Close, of nearby Low House Farm.

Turning off John Breckon Road on to the moor

Memorial cairn

Memorial bench at Great Hograh Beck

A new memorial plaque since our last visit

Shortly after the stone bridge we turned right onto a wide track and followed the path across the moor.  We walked downhill and passed by the above mentioned Low House Farm where Clive fed apples to a horse and a couple of ponies.

Rowan tree heavy with berries near Great Hograh Beck

Approaching Low House

Low House

Hanging on his every word....

We passed through Thorntree House Farm before reaching the Abbey where we were spotted by a pen of sheepdogs who raised a terrific din.

A short walk took us to the side of Baysdale Abbey.  The original abbey was occupied by 9 or 10 nuns from 1190 to 1539.   TSB tells how in 1304 Prioress Joan de Percy had not adhered to the monastic rules and Archbishop Corbridge had to commit the custody of the nuns of Baysdale to Roger de Kellshay, rector of Crathorne.  By 1307 Joan was still disobedient and was deprived of her post. She absconded from the abbey with some other nuns and Archbishop Grenfield ordered them back to the abbey "that they return without delay and not go outside the precincts of the abbey and serve God under the yoke of obedience..."   Unfortunately TSB doesn't relate how the story ends, did Joan continue with her wild ways or submit to the yoke of obedience?

We were interested to see a bat box on one of the abbey buildings and then walked away from the buildings across a quaint stone bridge which is apparently the only substantial remnant of the original abbey.  Crossing the bridge we followed the road to a footpath sign where we turned right to climb steeply through fields, all the way to the dale top, at a height of 1050 feet, where we paused to admire the view back to the abbey and collect our breath.

Sheepdogs at Baysdale Abbey Farm

Bat Box

Baysdale Abbey

Clive crossing the old bridge

The ancient abbey bridge

We turn right off the road to climb steeply to the dale top

The abbey far below us

Turn right and follow the tarmac road

 

We joined a tarmac road and turned right to follow it.  After a few minutes walking on this road we saw a stone memorial to the crew of a second world war plane that crashed on Kildale Moor; sadly the crew died from exposure before they could be rescued.

Looking across towards Battersby

We were amused to see a sheep with a punk hair do.  Actually it was orange baling twine and we suspect it must have pushed its head through a fence and got the twine caught around its horns.

A nice hair-do

"I don't think it's funny..."

We now had a walk of a couple of miles on tarmac as we descended towards Kildale.  At one point we were interested to see rock climbers on the rocky face of Park Nab.

The walk along tarmac was made more interesting by fine weather and fine views towards Battersby and beyond, and we soon reached Kildale and the end of our walk, where preparations were underway for Saturday's village show.

Climbing on Park Nab

Honeysuckle in the hedge

 

Hazel Head to Arnsgill and Cow Ridge

          7 miles                       Misty and still

We approached Hazel Head Car Park via a 6 mile drive along the unclassified road from Osmotherley and after driving past the ford at Blow Gill ('ravine with the dark ford') we parked at Hazel Head car park.

After donning our boots we returned along the road, back to Blow Gill where we admired an old lime kiln at the side of the road before climbing back uphill to Street Gate Farm.

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

Sheep at Hazel Head Car Park

Looking upstream at Blow Gill

Roadside Lime Kiln

Blow Gill

We thought it was unusual to see fully grown trees of different species so close to each other

Turning off the road at Street Gate Farm

Tom Scott Burns explains that a number of farmers in the region had their own lime kilns for burning lime, which was used for lime washing walls and dressing the land, a custom going back to Roman times. The lime neutralises the acid in the moorland soil allowing more varied crops to be grown.

The farm track led past Street Gate Farm and into South Wood.  Although now very overgrown and wet, this is an old lane and TSB tells how these lanes were used by tinkers and pedlars who became very numerous in the Middle Ages.   As well as selling goods these travelling salesmen were responsible for circulating news and delivering letters between settlements.

We surprised a large hedgehog in South Wood, plump and healthy looking, but we reflected how rarely we come across them on our walks.

Approaching Street Gate Farm

Hedgehog freezes as we approach

He looks fit and well

Overgrown path through South Wood

The track led us past another farm, Hagg House, where our arrival was heralded by a deafening cacophony of barking from a pen of spaniels.  We were impressed by an army all-terrain vehicle, ideal for these so called lanes.

Unusual farm vehicle at Hagg House

We continued along the wet lane until we reached Birk Wood Farm where we turned right and climbed steeply to reach a tarmac lane.  We turned right passing by another lime kiln and reached the moor gate.

Wet lane near Hagg House, note tree house.

Progress was slow as we picked our way through the mud

The lane improves as we approach Birk Wood Farm

 Letter box on the moor gate

As we entered the moor we passed a batch of bee hives, the first of several such batches that we saw today.  Opposite the hives was the reason for their presence, masses of flowering heather and as we walked along the scent became very strong and intoxicating.

Bee Hives....

... opposite the heather

The heather was in full bloom and we were sorry we weren't walking in sunshine, even so, it was very pretty. 

We walked passed a keeper's cottage (we were soon to meet the keeper at Head House) and Hill End Farm and walked on to Arnsgill Ridge with Snilesworth Moor to our left.  TSB says that in 1150 Snilesworth was written as Snigleawath, Snigels' Ford, based on the Norse word snigill, a snail.

Heading towards Hill End Farm

A nice contrast!

Tracks had been newly sanded and were a pleasure to walk on

Keeper's cottage

Crossing towards Arns Gill

Our track was now a distinct shooter's track that had been topped with sand recently, and after crossing the little footbridge over Arns Gill we climbed briskly to the moor above.  

We came to a large flat stone and decided to stop for coffee.  It was warm and still and a pleasure just to sit and listen to the bees droning as we ate our scones.

Bridge over Arns Gill

Leaving the bridge was a problem...

Climbing towards Hill End Farm

Another lime kiln at Hill End Farm

Passing the moor gate

A convenient rock makes a fine table.. and seat

Eventually we resumed our walk and coming to a fork turned right to drop down to Head House, an abandoned farm which is now used by the keepers for storage of bird food and the like.  We saw that a quad type vehicle was parked outside and as we passed by the keeper emerged and we stopped to chat.  He was friendly and it gave us an opportunity to ask a couple of questions we had been puzzling over.  For example, why did the keepers put out so many trays of grit for the birds, presumably there was no food in the grit? Couldn't the birds get grit for their gizzards without it being provided ? He explained that the grit was medicated to prevent the birds getting lung worms etc.  They had 10,000 birds to look after and disease can spread like wildfire amongst them.  

He told us he and his team were responsible for the newly sanded tracks and shooting boxes and showed off his vehicle, a brand new  Polaris 4x4, an American vehicle.  We asked about the hives, he said the honey produced can be bought in Osmotherley.  Why was no-one shooting?  This was the second Thursday we had walked since the Glorious 12th and we hadn't heard a shot.  Apparently there had been shoots on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday but they didn't generally have a shoot on a Thursday.

We always check for trapped rabbit babies nowadays....

Head House

Head House and Keeper's 4x4

More hives

We re-crossed Arns Gill and climbed to Cow Ridge and strode out along the moor path for a couple of miles.  

We came to a cairn which marked the location of Iron Howe.  TSB points out that all along this stretch are well preserved field boundaries and over 300 cairns dating from 2300 to 800BC.  Although they don't show well in the photographs they are in fact very noticeable as you walk along this stretch of the path.

Looking back at Head House

We remember that this rock used to have the word 'GROUSE' painted on it, someone else obviously didn't think it was funny and painted it white

Stoat or mink trap

More hives

Presumably this is to keep sheep off, but what of value is growing?

Cairn at Iron Howe

Bronze Age workings all along this stretch

Passing the last of the old cairns

We started to walk from Iron Howe downhill towards Blow Gill.  The last time we walked along here, in 2014, we had fine views towards Hawnby Hill and Easterside Hill but today they were hidden in mist.  

We followed our path past the strangely named Scotland Farm, spotting the old Wesleyan Chapel on the left, where we have stopped to rest on previous walks, before rejoining the road for a short walk back to Blow Gill and our car.

Scotland Farm

Old Wesleyan ruined chapel