On track around Goatland with the added bonus of the steam railway (From The Westmorland Gazette)

On track around Goatland with the added bonus of the steam railway

6:10pm Friday 27th January 2012

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In January I planned a really nostalgic walk.

As a boy in the Lake District in the 1940s we always went to church on Plough Monday, which is the nearest date to the January 6. This has gone out of fashion these days and I do regret it. Perhaps it can be revived in Cumbria? Goatland in North Yorkshire is the one place where the ancient ceremony is performed properly. In those days it was celebrated as the farm workers holiday. The plough is paraded through the streets before going to the church to be blessed. Then the revelry starts and I love every minute of it.

This walk has an added bonus because Goatland is on the North Yorkshire Steam Railway. The line opened on May 26, 1836, and was engineered by George Stephenson, with the initial intention of using horses as the major power. It closed during the Beeching cuts in the 1960s but the tourist railway was opened on May 1, 1973. At almost 20 miles, it is the second largest in Britain. It is now famous because it is the setting for the classic TV series Heartbeat.

How to get there:

from Pickering on the A170 turn north on the A169 and continue towards Whitby, which is only seven miles. A left turn leads along a narrow road to Goatland. Here there are plenty of cafes, pubs and toilets. There is parking in the village and a pay and display park at the station.

Map: OS Landscape 94

Grid reference: 838 024

Length: 5 miles

Time: allow 2-3 hours.

Route:

1 Start at the pay and display railway car park. Ascend a hill on the right through the village. Approach the Mallyan Spout Hotel and hereabout you are on a strip of Roman Road.

2 Follow a signed path to Mallyan Spout. This is one of a series of pretty waterfalls. Mallyan itself tumbles some 70-feet and looks stunningly beautiful in the winter when the leaves are off the trees. Do make sure, however, that you have stout footwear with you because the path can be slippery.

3 Follow the well marked signs and pass over two footbridges and alongside Scar Wood. Keep West Beck on the right and look out for the Dippers and Grey Wagtails which are around in the winter.

4 Meet a minor road and turn left for a short distance and then sharp right following a marked bridleway. Cross a bridge and then past a group of buildings. Go over a field, pass through a gate and bear slightly right through a woodland. At a gate leading to a farm gate turn left.

5 Follow a prominent sign indicating the Roman Road and continue along a well marked bridleway. Turn left and continue until you reach a ford.

6 Pass over the ford and follow the obvious track and continue between farm buildings. Turn left and ascend to reach a minor road. Turn right. Follow Hunt House Road and at Hunt House itself find a footpath clearly indicated to the left.

7 Take this left turn and pass through an area of green moorland. Pass a small tarn on the right. Follow a path marked by a series of cairns. Finally, ease away to the left and descend to a little stream. You reach a bridleway to reach the village and return to the starting point.

NB: Restrictions on space mean that this article provides a summary of the route. Anyone who plans to follow the walk is advised to take a copy of the relevant Ordnance Survey Map.