Newton On Ouse & Beningbrough

Distance: 4 miles (7km)

Difficulty: Easy
Walk Source: Walk 10 in the 'In and around the Vale of York' Jarrold pathfinder guide

It being a Bank Holiday Monday and a beautiful day, there was only one thing to do, and that was to get out there and enjoy the sunshine. I jumped in the car and before I knew it I was at Newton On Ouse, 9 miles north of York on the A19. I parked the car near the village green, and set off towards the river past The Dawnay Arms. There’s a footpath sign to the left across a small field just after the pub, and I went across it, searching for a stile to take me onto a path. I found it to the left of the field, climbed it, and soon I was on a path leading along the banks of the River Ouse at the bottom of peoples’ gardens. The path has quite a few gates and stiles, and on a sunny day it's really idyllic. After a while you enter a wooded area, and you can see Beningbrough Hall in the distance, before the trees shelter it from view again.

I did this walk in February as well, when the path was very muddy after the recent floodings. I was relieved today to see that the path had dried up, and I would definitely recommend walking here in the dry season only.

All of a sudden you emerge onto a huge open field, trees in the distance and river meandering by. There were quite a few people enjoying the sunshine there today. I soon joined them and spent an hour reading my book and sunbathing - it was perfect. I think maybe this will be my sun-spot that I''ll go to on warm days this summer.

Eventually I decided to walk on, and made my way past some very cute black cows who were grazing and undoubtedly also enjoying the sunshine.

At one point the river Ouse meets the river Nidd, and the path makes a sharp bend to the left. I followed the path along a line of trees, and soon found myself at the end of the path and turning left, joining the road coming out from Beningbrough Hall. It's only a narrow lane, and not much traffic, so it was a nice walk along it towards the Hall. Before coming to the Hall you walk past the Farm Shop, where you can buy all sorts of goodies, like home made chutneys, cakes, vegetables and more. They also have a cafe, so if you fancy you can sit down for some refreshments (although they close at 5.30pm and sadly I was too late for that today). 

I carried on along the road, past the Hall, and along an avenue of redwood trees. They are massively impressive and pretty. Soon I was at the old gatehouse and back in Newton On Ouse where I found my car and drove back home.

Excluding the break by the riverside the walk too me about an hour and a half, but that was at a slow pace meandering and taking lots of photos.

Kirkham Priory & The River Derwent

Distance: 5 miles (8km)
Difficulty: Easy
Walk Source: Walk 7 in the 'Vale of York and the Yorkshire Wolds' Jarrold pathfinder guide

 Drive about half an hour north of York on the A64, and you come to Kirkham Priory. The priory itself is quite small, and not much of it remains. If you want to enter the grounds you'll have to pay admission tickets, but you can park for free outside, although on warm summer days the car-park can be quite full and you may struggle to find space.

The walk starts by taking you across the river and the railway line. Then it quickly turns left into the forest and up a steep, but thankfully short, hill. At the top you turn left again, and follow the yellow way-markers across a small field, through the wood, and along another field until you are at the bottom of the hill and join a gravel road. This road soon ends on a tarmacked lane, and you turn left to follow this lane for quite a while. 

The tarmacked lane takes you across the railway line again, and past a little row of charming small houses. The stations both here and at Kirkham are closed now, but the old station masters' cottages are still here. 

Soon after you have passed the houses you come to a Public Footpath sign pointing left straight across a field. There are little wooden pegs to help you keep to the path as you cross. At the end of the field is my least favourite part of this walk; a sump-like area where I always end up with wet feet no matter how waterproof my shoes are. Sprinting across this sump takes you to the banks of the river Derwent, and you turn left to follow it as it meanders across country. 

From here the walk is quite easy, as it follows the riverbank back to the priory. There are little footbridges to cross here and there, and in spring the sides of the path are lined with wild garlic that can be picked along the way. There are also some lovely views of the priory across the river as you get nearer the end of the walk. 

The scenery on this walk is perhaps not the most impressive ever, but it is a comfortable walk, at least I think so. It's close to the city, but it really has the countryside quiet that I some times long for. And it does have a bit of variation, with a wooded area, fields, and riverbank. 

The walk took me nearly a couple of hours, but that included lots of stops for photos, and also foraging for wild garlic.

Around Kexwith Moor

Distance: approx. 23 miles
Difficulty: Difficult/Long
Walk Source: Ordnance Survey Explorer Map OL30 and gps-routes.co.uk

A couple of weekends ago I decided to get my (new) tent out and go for a long walk - to get away from all the stresses of the city and to get a bit more time away than just on a day's walk. So on a rainy Saturday morning I packed my rucksack and set off for my great adventure. I had hoped that maybe the weather would improve as I drove north, but no such luck. 

After about 60 miles (just north of Scotch Corner) I turned off the main road and headed towards the village of Barningham, carefully navigating the small lakes that had formed on the country lane. I drove though the village, and found a lay-by just where the houses ended, where I was assured by a very friendly local man on tractor that it would be ok to park for the weekend. 

After some last-minute rearranging of my rucksack I was ready to set off in the rain, only then realising that the fog was moving in closer. I considered for a moment the wiseness of my walk, but decided that since there were no steep cliffs involved, and since there are houses and villages scattered everywhere, I was not in any immediate danger even in the fog. And if it got too bad I could always turn back. 

So off I went, past an old gentleman walking his dog who assured me that the weather could only get worse, and past a few remote farms. The bridleway soon took me into a wood and past a horse-farm, where I met a beautiful little dachshund and his two owners who were out hunting pheasants. They looked a little bewildered by my rucksack, then looked at the clouds and shook their heads, but were very friendly about it. In their eyes I must have looked like a typical crazy city-dweller; after all, who would want to be out in the rain if they didn't absolutely have to? 

Now, according to my map, I should be cutting through the woods to join a road on the other side. The only problem was that someone had stolen the forest. There were plenty of forestry-machines, and piles of logged trees, but not so much in the way of trees still standing. So I guestimated my way though what can only be described as a mud-bath, before finding solid ground again and setting off in search of the road supposedly located on the other edge of the missing wood. Unfortunately the fog was so thick at this point that it was impossible to see any further than a couple of metres ahead, but suddenly, to my great relief, the road was there before me. I turned left, and followed the road over a little hill and past a bend, and then I set off into the rather wet undergrowth again. 

What was supposed to be little streams were now quite a lot larger rivers, so I made a small detour on my route towards the top of a ridge, where I had planned to spend the night. The hill was quite steep for my already tired legs (am not used to carry a backpack), but I eventually got to the top, and started looking for a place to bed down. Avoiding the scariest-looking sheep, and also the wettest part of the bog, I managed to find a rather lovely and sheltered spot where I erected my tent and dived in (the rain was properly chucking it down by this time). 

The next morning I awoke to beautiful sunshine and a stunning view (the fog had been too thick for me to appreciate this the previous evening). And after breakfast I set off again on my trek. I kept to the top of the ridge, and then gradually turned inland on small paths over the moors, before joining a bridleway that took me first over a beautifully purple moor then through a lusciously green valley. I then climbed the other side-wall of the dale, and decided that this was such a beautiful spot I couldn't possibly walk past it. So I set up house and sat down to enjoy the sunset and my dinner.

After a good night's sleep I peeped out of my tent to discover that the lovely sunshine of the day before had gone, and instead I had a cloudy day ahead of me. By the time I'd had my breakfast and was ready to move on the first raindrops were falling, but by this point I really didn't care. I felt more relaxed than I had done all summer, and with such beautiful views who can get upset over a few raindrops? Sadly the few raindrops turned into sheets of sideways rain, but wandering through the fields and past derelict farms I couldn't help enjoying myself and the solitude. 

Eventually I made it back to the car, and had to face the real world again. 

Wharram Percy

Distance: 2.5 miles (4km)
Difficulty: Easy 
Walk Source: Walk 3 in the 'Vale of York and the Yorkshire Wolds' pathfinder guide

 About half an hour or so out of York, along the A166, is the remains of a little medieval village; Wharram Percy. It sits in a quiet and beautiful valley in the Yorkshire Wolds, protected from high winds and with its own fish-pond. There are many footpaths around, so if you've got a map you can choose any number of variations on the walk.

I chose to more or less follow the path described in my guide-book, except that I did it back to front. There is a well kept car park near Bella farm, and from there you can follow signs down to the old village. The path gradually descends past a field, and crosses a small stream before reaching the English Heritage property. Admission is free, and the property is open all year round.

The first thing that greets you is the large house that accommodated the workers, and later the archaeologists who worked on the site for many many years. Behind that is the ruins of the village church, still quite impressive, with all four walls more or less there. Some graves are also still intact, with beautiful old gravestones.

The pond has been recreated to its old glory, and from there you head uphill towards the ridge of the little valley. There is a lovely view over the Vale of York extending from the village, and as you turn left at the small wooded area you get to walk alongside this view. From there it's not a long walk back to the car park; after turning left where you meet the tarmacked road you walk along a field for a while and then suddenly you are back where you started.

Scampston Walled Gardens

This walk is technically more of a garden wander than the sort of walk I normally undertake, but it was so pretty I wanted to share it with you anyway.

Scampston is a little village outside of Malton, North Yorkshire, on the road to Scarborough. When you get there, you see a small green sign to the walled gardens, and you’ll have to think and react rather quickly, as you don’t have much time before you are at the road’s turnoff. You’re taken down a little track through the old village, and after a few turns and bends you arrive at the gardens. Car parking is free, on a green grass lawn just outside the entrance.

I have to admit that I did not expect the cafe and shop by the entrance to be as new and modern as it was. And very welcoming and friendly-feeling it was too. We started off with a rest in the cafe; delicious scones with clotted cream and jam, and a beautiful sparkly elderflower cordial. Very refreshing.

 Feeling refreshed and energised, we wandered out into the walled garden. The ticket price was £8 per adult for entry to both the garden and the cascading circuit (a stroll past the house and through the wider gardens). 

We were first greeted by a long path between the outer wall and a thick green hedge. Along the wall were flowers of all sorts and colours, and at once I fell into peace, it was such a calm place; perfect as an introduction to the gardens.

As we rounded the corner, the garden opened up in all its glory; a sea of purple and green swaying gently in the breeze. And in the middle of the hedged-in square, four trees with individual benches in between. Beautiful.

There were several compartments to the garden; there were vegetables, and some trimmed hedges in fancy shapes, some wild-flowers and cottage garden style plants. There was even a little pond in one corner.

After spending some time in the walled garden (the lady selling tickets had advised that we would use about 45 minutes in there, but it was more like an hour and a quarter), we went in search of the circuit walk. We easily found the entrance to it just where we had been told it would be, to the left outside the main entrance.

We walked down the shadowy path between some large trees and the garden wall, and I wasn’t so sure this would be an interesting walk, but soon we came back into the sunshine, and I felt a lot better about it. We approached the house, which was closed off and marked as private. It had a bit of an eerie feel to it, as if it was all alone and abandoned, with all the curtains closed and no movement anywhere. Luckily the lawn in front of the house was pretty, and we came across both flower borders, and a rockery. And a bit further along was a newer part of the house, which looked inhabited and modernised. Soon we came to a water feature, one of those little houses with Greek columns, which was actually a bride over some water. I wasn’t quite sure if it was a small lake or a river, although the map had it marked as a lake. We crossed the bridge, and meandered along the other side of the lake until it was time to cross it again, this time on a small and narrow bridge.

The last bit of path was though an open field with some huge trees of various descriptions, and soon we were back where we had started, and traced out steps back to the main entrance and cafe, where we sat down in the sunshine with a well deserved (we thought) ice cream each.   

The walk within the walled garden was easy on the legs, and would be very suitable for buggies and wheelchairs. The cascading circuit would be a bit more tricky; the grass was a bit long in places, and also a bit narrow. But some of it could be done, at least around the house and on the gravelled tracks.