The Rosedale Railway and Botton Head from Ingleby Greenhow
8.5 miles Mainly fine but cool
We parked in Ingleby Greenhow in the overflow car park for the Dudley Arms and walked back to the main road in the direction of Kildale.
Tom Scott Burns notes in his Walker's Guide to the Cleveland Hills that the name Ingleby has been written in various ways over the years, including Angleby, Engelbi, Yngleby and Yngylby.
The route parts from the road alongside a newly built house where we followed an overgrown path onto meadows.
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| Today's walk from The Walker's Guide to the Cleveland Hills |
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| The Old Vicarage, Ingleby Greenhow |
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| Houses in Ingleby |
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| Turn off road at footpath sign |
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| Track between houses leads to open fields |
We crossed a field with sheep, adjacent to Ingleby Manor and then several meadows, to arrive at Bank Foot Farm situated under Turkey Nab, which is probably derived from the old personal name Thorlkil. Tom Scott Burns says in his Walker's Guide that in 1729 William Parkin was hung from gallows mounted on Turkey Nab for murdering his brother-in-law at Great Broughton.
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| Fine rain is gradually clearing |
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| Ingleby Manor |
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| Wet horses near Bank Foot Farm |
We joined the bed of the old railway track at Bank Foot and turned right to walk towards the incline bottom. After a couple of miles we passed by some old railway cottages and reached the stiff gradient of the old incline railway.
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| Following the old railway track |
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| We reach the old railway cottages |
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| Partly hidden blacksmith weather vane at railway cottages |
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| The left fork takes us up the Incline |
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| A long climb! |
Tom Scott Burns tells us that the old railway was completed in 1861 and leads to the foot of the incline bank where the trains were loaded with ironstone. The incline reaches a maximum gradient of 1 in 5 and a brake drum house was situated at the top. Three empty wagons were hauled by steel ropes as three loaded wagons descended, an operation which took 3 minutes at a speed of 20mph, regulated by the drum house.
Just over half way up, after passing through a gate, we came to some old graffiti of a man in a top hat and a bird carved onto a rock on our left. TSB reckons this was probably the work of a railway navvy whiling away a few minutes of leisure.
It's quite a long hard climb and as we reached the top we decided to get behind a hillock to sit and enjoy our coffee and scones out of the wind.
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| Looking back down the Incline |
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| A navvy's graffiti? |
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| Looking over to our right at old excavations |
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| Clay Bank in the distance |
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| A sheltered spot for coffee |
Finishing our coffee we set off for the short climb to the top where we looked at the remains of the drum house.
We then continued to follow the old railway line passing a memorial bench looking down into Greenhow Botton. This would have been an ideal spot for coffee but for the cold wind.
TSB tells us that the railway officially closed on 13th June 1929 and its flat even surface makes a nice 11 mile path to Farndale, Westerdale and Rosedale.
Soon after the bench we turned right off the old railway and joined a trail to Cockayne Head and Botton Head, which is part of the Cleveland Way.
As we followed this sandy path we were amused to have the company of three birds which we believe to be snow buntings. They remained a few yards ahead of us for over a mile, never letting me near enough to get a good photo of them.
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| A large frog hopped across the path as we approached the old drum house |
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| Remains of the drum house |
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| Memorial bench |
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| Bear right to leave the old railway |
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| .... and join the Cleveland Way |
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| Now following the trail to Botton Head |
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| Grouse have their white winter gaiters on |
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| We think these are snow buntings? |
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| They hopped along, always a few feet ahead |
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| White underneath and an orange patch behind the eye |
As we walked this trail we came to two old boundary posts, the first known as The Face Stone is mentioned in a 1642 document for the Helmsley Estate, and the second, showing a carved hand, near to Round Hill dates from 1711. Near the Hand Stone is the trig point at Botton Howe which is located on a Bronze Age burial mound at 1490 feet, the highest point on the North York Moors.
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| The Face Stone |
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| The Hand Stone |
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| Trig Point at Botton Howe |
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| Our buntings finally leave us |
If we are correct in our identification of the snow buntings, and I think the above photo shows its markings more clearly, then we have shared the company of a rare bird in the UK, where there are believed to be only 60 breeding pairs. However, in the autumn they are more frequently seen in the North East of England when continental birds join our birds for the winter.
https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/wildlife-guides/bird-a-z/snow-bunting
We followed the wide path and continued across Urra Moor, which according to TSB derives from the Old English 'horh' meaning 'filth'!
Eventually we came to a signpost and an indistinct path right that we followed to quickly drop off the moor down Jackson's Bank and into Greenhow Plantation.
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| Urra Moor |
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| Turn right at the sign onto a narrow path |
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| Clay Bank and Wainstones over to the left |
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| Our outward path up the Incline can be seen opposite |
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| Descending Jackson's Bank |
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| Approaching Greenhow Plantation |
We reached the lane down Greenhow Bottoms and over to the right we could see the incline railway while ahead of us Roseberry Topping appeared in the distance. A mile or so further on the tarmac lane and we reached Low Farm where we stopped to admire some Texel rams, one of whom appeared to have a leg injury probably caused by one of his rivals.
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| The Incline Railway |
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| Texel rams |
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| Handsome is as handsome does... |
We turned right, following a footpath sign into Low Farm where we admired their 'ancient' stone circle and weather vane.
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| Low Farm |
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| 'Ancient' stone circle |
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| Weather vane at Low Farm |
Our path turned left before the farm buildings into fields which we crossed, one after another, on an unseen right of way, aiming for the yellow right of way signs at the field boundaries.
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| Across fields after Low Farm |
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| Ram with covering paint |
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| Altar Window |
A good walk with a bit of everything; hills, moors, farms and woods. Much recommended and a short drive from the Royal Oak at Ayton, where we discussed the day's finer points.
