Howl Dale, Scalla Moor and Newbridge

This week's walk was done whilst dog-sitting for a friend in North Yorkshire. The walk is 6.5 miles long and begins from Ruffa Lane in Pickering.

A gate at the end of Ruffa Lane leads onto a path which in turn gives access to Howl Dale Wood. The dog, Kia, brought me a stick with an interesting mushroom on it which could possibly be Scarlet Elf Cup:

 Sarcoscypha coccinea?

Not entirely sure, but nonetheless quite pretty. We walked through the wood, the path of which is set in a little valley with trees rising up each side to form a V. The path became rather muddy after a while and I gave up trying to avoid the worst bits as my trousers were already filthy. We eventually met a wall running down from our left and headed up alongside it to meet a stile.

Drystone wall

With my usual walking companion Sybil, stiles are no problem as she leaps over them. Kia however, is a Rottweiler so if she couldn't leap them I wouldn't be able to lift her either. Luckily it seems a lot of dog walkers use this route as all the stiles we encountered had holes in the fences next to them to allow dogs through. We headed up the side of the field towards Scalla Moor Plantation. A tree stump had been used as a table for a squirrel, it seemed, as it was littered with the remains of several pine cones:

Squirrel table

Another stile at the end of the plantation led to the Whitby Road where a sign indicated the boundary of the National Park.

Whitby Road

Another yomp along a field edge took us into Little Park Wood. A path led steeply down towards Pickering Beck, which we followed downstream through the wood until we came out into a long field. This was a particularly enjoyable part of the walk, with woods on one side and Pickering Beck on the other. Beyond Pickering Beck was the North York Moors railway, where we were just in time to see a steam train heading back to the station.

Little mushroom in the field

We joined a woodland path via a kissing gate which eventually brought us out into Newbridge. Crossing the railway line, we walked past several cottages and through another field, coming out near the railway station where the 2 o' clock train was just leaving. Walking through the town centre covered in mud, on a Saturday, was not something I'd like to repeat in a hurry!

RSPB Wombwell Ings, Gypsy Marsh, Old Moor and a booming bittern

Today was meant to be spent as a simple visit to RSPB Old Moor; however a "Royal Visitor" at the reserve meant that Old Moor was closed until 1pm. A helpful lady at the entrance handed me a couple of sheets to do an alternative walk of 3.5 miles which would take me nicely up to about the time the reserve opened again.

Wath Ings

The walk headed up the Trans Pennine Trail (TPT) and around the boundaries of the Old Moor reserve. A couple of viewpoints gave nice views of Wath Ings and the surrounding wetlands, which aside from several noisy flocks of black headed gulls seemed to be rather quiet today.

I turned left onto the old railway line past Bolton Ings nature reserve and said hello to a friendly Labrador and an energetic spaniel. Walking alongside the River Dearne I turned into Wombwell Ings and watched a grey heron flying low over some fields. A flock of lapwing were in the next field.

River Dearne

The next stop on the tour was Gypsy Marsh nature reserve which was nestled at the end of Broomhill village. Nothing much to see here at the moment but the information tells me summer is the time to visit, when the reserve is home to four different orchid species and Dingy Skipper butterflies.

The path then rejoined the TPT back towards Old Moor, which was now reopened. The visitor centre assistants told me to head towards the reedbeds, as a bittern had been booming lately. I listened out for it, and it was to be heard but unfortunately not seen. Not tempted to wait around any longer in the bitter cold I visited the Garden Bird Hide, which was a flurry of activity. I walked towards Wath bus station via Manvers Lake, where I was hissed at and hurried along by a goose.

Rotherham Roundwalk Part I

The Rotherham Roundwalk is a 25 mile route that goes through the best of Rotherham's countryside. I decided to split the walk into two sections, as I haven't quite built up to that mileage yet.

The walk starts from All Saints Square in the town centre, and leaves via a number of streets until entering a wooded clough up to Fenton Road. Up past the Ring O' Bells and onto a footpath from Simmonite Road, and we turned into a small woodland where I heard a woodpecker drumming. We passed through Wingfield and entered another wood where things got a bit confusing. The map directed us across a field where there wasn't the faintest hint of a footpath; the field had been seeded recently and the mud was very wet and sticky. I decided to take us towards the distant but visible Keppel's Column, only I couldn't decide whether to take us back on ourselves and through the woods parallel to Town Lane or to carry on down and head towards Wentworth Woodhouse and then turn left. This resulted in us walking back and forth a few times, much to the amusement of several dog walkers in the woods, who gave us several quizzical glances.

Of course taking us away from the footpath meant we had to find it again, but I've walked through Scholes' Coppice several times recently so knew that we would rejoin the footpath if we carried on towards Greasbrough Dams. Walking alongside the stream I was dismayed to see a small rabbit heading towards me, followed by two lurchers and a spaniel. Luckily the little rabbit spotted me and dashed left into the undergrowth, where the dogs then lost it. Walking on, we turned towards the fields where I knew the footpath led upwards then left towards the Dams. Not as easy to tell when the fields are bare, though. Last time I walked this way the mud was terrible and stuck to your boots, weighing them down until you got to sturdy ground to knock it off. This time however the recent lack of rain and today's glaring sun had baked the earth quite firm.

Towards the Dams

We headed past Wentworth Woodhouse and onwards towards Cortworth House. Sybil was very funny walking past the grass verges, where the long grass had folded over to conceal small mammals. She would stare into the grass with a bemused expression on her face, then pounce like a fox to stick her nose in the grass where the movement or noise had come from and promptly take it back out again. No animals were harmed however, as they were far too quick for her.

On a track near Hoober Stand I let Sybil back off-lead and she promptly collapsed, leading to a much-needed refreshment break. Unfortunately I had discovered that one of my water bottles was leaking as the pet rats had nibbled at a corner, meaning we had to conserve water. Sybil was usually fine, finding water in streams or puddles but I made sure she had enough to drink, meaning I was parched by the time we got home!

A lovely cobbled path lead most of the way down towards Rawmarsh and we left via Aldwarke Road, which would take us most of the way home. A quick pitstop at Asda sated both our thirsts and we arrived back home none the worse for wear (mostly!). Part II of this walk to follow soon.