The Drove Road and Windygill Ridge from Boltby

 7 miles        Cool and fair with good visibilty

We parked in Boltby for today's walk, approaching the village from the A19 and the Knayton turn-off and parking 200 yards east of the village where there is a hard standing. We continued walking east along the road until we reached the lane to Lunshaw House Farm.  We turned into that lane and left it immediately to cross sloping fields to woodland which leads to a stone crossing of Lunshaw Beck.

 Today's walk from A Walker's Guide to the Hambleton Hills by Tom Scott Burns 

 Leaving the lane to Lunshaw House Farm

 Across meadows to woodland

Above Lunshaw Beck

Crossing Lunshaw Beck

After the beck there was a steep winding path that led us to Low Paradise Farm where we chatted to the farmer's wife about the weather.  As we walked away she shouted, "Watch out for the hounds, my husband's exercising them."    I told Clive that she was obviously uncertain about us and saying this was a way of letting us know her husband was about.

Little and Large, horses at Low Paradise Farm

The Vale of Mowbray

 Low Paradise Farm

We continued to climb, admiring the views of the Vale of Mowbray when we heard a man shouting "Come back!"  and looking into a field saw three large hounds running towards us.  The farmer's wife had been telling the truth.   They cleared the gate in a bound and ran straight to us, jumping up as we tried to fend them off.  The man continued his distant shouting to no avail but fortunately the dogs were not vicious, just very dirty!  Eventually we broke free and the dogs ran back to their owner and we continued our climb to High Paradise Farm, which we had walked through a few weeks ago.  The piglets that we had admired and photographed then were now growing fat and sleek and had been separated from the old sow, who was observing proceedings from the other side of a fence.  We watched them happily rooting through the leaves before walking on to join the old Drove Road.

"Down Boy!"

 Dogs run free

High Paradise Farm

 Truffle piglets

As we walked towards the Drove Road we came upon two calves wandering freely on the path, whether by design or accident we didn't know, but they seemed happy enough.   We passed them and walked along the old Hambleton Drove Road to Steeple Cross where we sat down under the Cleveland Way sign to enjoy our coffee and scones, looking out over the bleak and empty moorland.    Although is was definitely bleak it was not completely empty, however.  There was the wooden Cleveland Way sign under which I was sitting and which, as I jumped to my feet, knocked me brainlessly back into my sitting position again.  When Clive had finished laughing we set off, turning immediately left into a forestry track that runs alongside a conifer plantation.

Calves on the track

Hambleton Drove Road

Steeple Cross was mentioned in 1246

We emerged from the forestry plantation at Gallow Hill where one can stand on an ancient tumulus and look down onto Cowesby.  We turned left here into Windygill Ridge and walked with trees on one side and a good view of the Vale of Mowbray on the other.  

A casualty of last week's 'Great Storm'? 

 Looking across towards Silton

Immediately below is hidden Kepwick and to the left, Cowesby

As our trail passed Seta Pike, a small hummock, it started to descend through the trees.  We crossed wide forestry trails as we took a direct route downwards towards Boltby, and at the side of the track we saw a dead mole, still fresh, and wondered what had happened to it.  There was no sign of injury, had it felt unwell and emerged from its tunnels to die?  

 Descending from Windygill Ridge

 Faint track through Boltby Forest

What happened to the mole?

We emerged from the trees and crossed meadow after meadow, until we saw the pantile roofs of Boltby below.  We emerged into the village at the west end and walked along the main street admiring the old cottages before climbing steeply back up the hill to our car.   As usual a fine walk.  Tom Scott Burns never lets us down!

Walking down into Boltby 

Boltby Village

Old pack horse bridge in Boltby

Kirby Knowle to Felixkirk and Boltby

8.5 miles        Warm and sunny

We drove to Kirby Knowle via the A19 Knayton turn off and parked at the end of the village on the grass verge, opposite the chuch.

 Today's walk from The Walker's Guide to the Hambleton Hills by Tom Scott Burns

St Wilfred's Church, Kirby Knowle

We left the car and walked back along the road for .75 mile until we almost reached Upsall, where we turned left into a meadow and then trekked over fields, through small woods and negotiated two becks, neither of which had a bridge.   The walking was pleasant in the sunshine but the grass was very wet and our trouser cuffs were soon soaked.

 Crossing Turton Beckstead

Our path reached a road on the outskirts of Felixkirk and we decided to have a look at the old church, which was unlocked, very tidy and unusually for a church, felt warm and inviting with sun streaming through the windows.  We looked round the graveyard and the Victorian epitaphs on some of the gravestones made one feel quite sad.

 The Church of St Felix

'Afflictions sore did I bear

Physicians their skill tried

I left my wife and children dear

For God to be their guide'

'Hannah, the lamented wife of David Cornforth'

'20 years I was a maid

1 year I was a wife

18 hours a mother

And then departed life'

We returned to the outskirts of Felixkirk where, after a small unintentional diversion we returned to our route and walked up a narrow road past the lodge to Mount St John.  A few hundred yards later we left the tarmac and followed a farm track towards Cinque Cliff House where a new footpath diversion took us round the house via a meadow.  This field gave us a good view down into the surrounding countryside and we decided it was the perfect spot to have our coffee and scones.  

 Lodge to Mount St John

 The view from our coffee stop

 It was nice to see Hedgehog ladders in all the cattle grids in this area!

Green lane towards Thirlby

We walked along an old green lane which eventually reached the road close to Thirlby, a pretty village where we came to a house called Pear Tree House, next to the river.  This house is owned by the family of Bob Hunter, a cabinet maker who used to work with 'Mouseman' Thompson at Kilburn.  Bob was known as the 'wren man' and marked his furniture with the carving of a wren.  http://www.wrencabinetmakers.com  We looked through the window and could see a small display of furniture for sale.  The door was unlocked so we popped in to admire the handiwork which was unfortunately out of our price range!

 

Pear Tree House, Thirlby

Home of the 'Wren Man'

Thirlby

We crossed the ford in Thirlby and turned left into meadows at Thirlby Farm.  Our track here was barely discernable in the grass and we relied heavily on the yellow right of way markers on the field bounderies.  We passed an old farm called Tang Hall and followed the beck upstream to the village of Boltby.

 The escarpment behind Thirlby

 Following the faint path across meadows

Holy Trinity Church at Boltby

We left Boltby turning left at a small bridge across Gurtof Beck and walked past a field containing a horse and a handsome ram.  Both ran over to see us and each was rewarded with a cough sweet which they seemed to thoroughly enjoy.

 Clive shares his 'Jerksons Throat and Chest Lozenges' with his new friends

 Lazy dining

We now commenced what should have been the last leg of our walk, back to Kirby Knowle.  As we walked through a field we came across a partridge sitting in our path, which on inspection appeared blind.  Clive examined it and found it had corn in its crop but both eyes were closed.  As we debated whether to dispatch it humanely a 4x4 drove slowly along the track towards us.  It was the farmer who told us that the gamekeeper was up ahead and he would tell him about the bird.  He could decide what to do and whether it could be helped.  We replaced the bird on the path and followed the landrover up towards Westow Conifer plantation.  We were so engrossed in our conversation about the bird that we missed our turn and continued into and up through the plantation until we reached the top edge, looking down onto the village of  Cowesby which is far north of where we should have been.  We realised we had lost our way and after checking the Ordnance Survey map we walked left along the perimeter of the woods and eventually down to arrive at Kirby Knowle and the car, an hour later and a couple of miles further than anticipated.   At least a ten miler for us today but the unseasonal warm sun and fine views made it a pleasure!

 'Blind' Partridge

Is that Cowesby below - where are we?!

 Finally walking back down to Kirby Knowle

NB   An internet search reveals that game birds are susceptible to a disease called Pseudomonas

which causes blindness.  See here.