Egton Bridge: 10 April 2011
- Distance
- 11½ miles
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Location
- Egton Bridge … Map of start point
- Transport
- Trains from Whitby and Middlesbrough
- Leader
- Kelly
A scorching hot day awaited the group who had made their way to the far side of the Moors. We set off promptly along the valley floor, then turned to cross the Rover Esk and were soon climbing steeply uphill through woods and then over farmland - this was to set the tone of the day! After a pause for breath, we continued over hilly farmland before dropping steeply down to join the Goathland—Grosmont Rail Trail, which was pleasantly flat. This took us along the side of the river to the honeypot hamlet of Beck Hole, where to the consternation of several walkers, we found it was too early in the season for the shop to stock ice cream (or cider!).
From Beck Hole, we climbed up onto the top of the moors and saw (OK, narrowly avoided treading on) an adder slithering its way across the hot, dusty path. Continuing, we came to a lunch stop by a tumbledown barn, overlooking the steep-sided valley of The Delves. Yes, that's we were heading next, down one side and up the other, on a path that had suffered in the recent strong winds, as fallen trees made our route briefly more difficult. Following the road downhill, we turned onto an ancient woodland track, running alongside the River Esk, to the multiple river crossings at Beggars Bridge, where the old stone arch footbridge is joined by a railway bridge, a modern road bridge and a ford.
Taking a good track north, we headed across undulating farmland to the last (yes, really the last!) steep climb, brought us up to a pretty chapel, set in a large graveyard filled with daffodils, miles from the nearest village. We had a good look round, then took an easy path downhill to return to Egton Bridge, and so to the pub.
Photos by Stevie and Jonny