This was a repeat of a walk I did a few days ago, the only differences being that I was accompanied by Mal & his dog Tess, and Lindsay. The weather was overcast and carried a threat of rain.
Distance 14.4 miles
Hight Gained 1722 ft Grade Moderate Weather Fine and sunny with a breeze off the sea. I was feeling a little out of sorts when I set out but decided do a few miles anyway and see if I could walk the stiffness out of my joints. I set off in the direction of Golden Grove via the old railway viaduct and once in Cock Mill Woods woods I decided to take a different route to my usual and turned off on what appeared to be a well used path which followed the course of Stainsacre Beck. At first it was easy going but after a little while, the beck passed through a rocky gorge and the path climbed up a steep hillside and as I progressed it became more and more overgrown. I knew that I only had a mile or so to go before I reached the opposite end of the wood so I stuck with it but I began to notice that on the patches of soft ground there was a complete absence of boot prints, all I could see was deer tracks. At last the path descended to the beck again and from there I found the easiest way was to actually walk in the bed of the stream which was only very shallow in most parts. Eventually came to a place I recognised and lost no time in getting back onto my more usual route along Long Rigg. Distance 5 miles
Grade Easy Weather, A little cooler but still bright Height gained 229ft Company Solo Today's route was a simple walk along the beach to Sandsend, as it was high tide there were a couple of places where I had to be careful where I put my feet. From Sandsend I made my way up Dunsley Lane to Raven Hill Farm where I turned off to the left and followed the field paths to Raithwaite and high Straggleton before returning to Whitby via the road. Please click on photos to enlarge and read any captions. Distance 7.8 miles
Altitude gained 765ft Company Solo After completing the Esk Valley Walk a few days ago I was looking over the route and noticed that it had been changed between Sleights and Ruswarp. We had followed the route marked on an old guide that I have which takes the road along the Carrs, while the new route crosses the Esk and follows footpaths and byways along the opposite side of the river. I decided to incorporate this into today's walk and have to admit that it is far better than walking along the road. The only downside is that it includes an extra 765ft of climbing which can put an extra strain on tired legs. click on photos to enlarge and see the captions. Distance 9.1 miles
Hight gained 987ft Weather Fine & Sunny Company Mal & Tess, Lindsay. Distance 21 miles
Height Gained 1514ft Weather Overcast at first but improving as the day wore on. Company Mal For the second stage of the walk we took the 0850 train to Castleton and headed East for Whitby, just over 20 miles away. Although a little weary from our walk the previous day we soon got into our stride and again, we had an excellent days walking. click on the photos to enlarge and read captions. Distance 15.6 miles
Hight gained 1715ft Weather Some cloud at times but mainly sunny Company Mal. I have walked parts of this route on numerous occasions but this was the first time that I have walked the full distance on two consecutive days. I did the walk with John in 2011 but with about a week between the two stages. One thing that I noticed on both occasions was that it seems to be a walk which is not as popular as it could be, over much of the route there was very little trace of footpaths being used at all with some sections badly overgrown. I do not remember ever actually meeting anyone who was doing the walk in its entirety. This is a pity because it is a cracking walk through some of the finest scenery in North Yorkshire. Transport is not a problem either, day one starts and finishes at Castleton Station and for day two it is convenient to travel from Whitby out to Castleton on the train. please click on the photos to read any captions |