After leaving the coach at the car park we walked back into the village and just after passing the Ryedale Folk Museum and a tiny church we joined a footpath to our left. We passed through a gate and 2 or 3 stiles and then we continued on a pleasant grassy path leading gently uphill with fine views to the left of Spaunton Moor - a wonderful place for a coffee stop. Soon we reached the road to Lastingham where we turned right and followed the road for ½ mile - it has good wide verges.
Where the road turned sharply to the right, just before a junction, we turned left at a public footpath sign, the path curving right and Ken managing to find the only bit of mud on the walk! The path kept to the edge of the moor above the village of Lastingham and gave us fine views of the empty moorland to our left.
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After climbing gently there was a short but steep drop down to a stream then a climb straight up the hill on the other side to a wooden seat and footpath sign. From here we could see a huge group of walkers coming towards us on the track from Lastingham. We waited a while to let them get ahead but luckily they we going straight ahead into the moors.
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From here we continued ahead towards Askew Rigg on a fairly gentle climb broken by a tricky section as we crossed at the confluence of Tranmire and Grain Becks.
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View north from Askew Rigg |
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At Askew Rigg we had a quick break for everyone to catch up then we turned right to the summit of Askew Rigg then down on a track into Lower Askew. Here we continued on the road over a bridge, crossing Ings Beck, spent some time discussing whether a suspiciously static deer on the slopes of Birk Head was real or not - it must have been a sculpture - and just before a wood on our right - Hagg Wood - we joined a footpath on our right over a ploughed field. |
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In the next field we stopped for lunch where we could see walkers making their way down from Askew Rigg. After lunch we continued into Lastingham where we had a choice of visiting the pub or church. By this time it was getting extremely hot the pub won hands down but we still had time on leaving to visit the church and its magnificent Norman crypt.
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From Lastingham we joined a road by the church - signposted Appleton-le-Moors - and after a short climb turned right into Spaunton. |
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After passing through the hamlet we turned left at a T junction where a garage on our right was decorated with old advertising panels, down a rough track - Spaunton Lane . |
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After about ¾ mile we turned right at a crossroad of tracks down another broad track, Lingmoor lane, towards a wood. Just before reaching the wood we bore right through a gate and followed a pleasant path along the edge of the trees before curving left downhill to emerge from the wood.
We turned right onto a track - Bottomfields lane - then after about ½ mile the track turned left taking us around Austin Head back to the village. By this time we were all we were all very hot - the sun was blazing down and there was no wind - so everyone rushed off for refreshments, the Crown Pub being the most popular. |
