Day 3 Osmotherley to Clay Bank

Last night we had pink trifle for pudding - sponge, jelly, raspberries and pink instant whip, Alan really enjoyed it!!  -    I'm waiting for the photo - check back tomorrow.


After dinner and when it was dark we turned all the lights out and played sardines - this is a perfect house for such games, Lin went to hide and we all had to run around the house trying not to fall downstairs (it was really dark in places), all except Alan managed to find Lin behind the curtains on the window seat in the play / games room - all good fun :)

Setting off from Osmotherley

   Today was supposed to be the most strenuous of the whole Cleveland Way according to the book, and I would tend to agree with that so far!  After the first mile, the route is the same as the coast to coast walk, and so everyone apart from me and Stuey had walked the majority of this section before, although when they walked it 2 years ago the weather was not good as it rained all day and was quite misty.  The weather today though was very different - it was sunny and reasonably warm, with just a few spots of rain.

Pretending to be cows

We set off from Osmotherley quite early as usual (about 8.20am); John was driving and Tim was co-pilot.  The route started off quite easily with a steady up, but as time went on the ups and downs got more and more.  But - the scenery was stunning; the moors are really beautiful, and we also walked through some wooded areas.  At the end, the walk went up to the Wain Stones which I had walked up to with Carol on the Coast to Coast the day after the others in the nice weather, and the others had only seen them in the mist.

The Wain stones with Steve W on top.

 Tim and John had a hard up and down walk to meet us which they did after we had walked about 7 miles.  We had a great lunch stop with proper coffee at a new location called Lords stones which had been opened in the last couple of years, after our last visit.

A distance of 11.5 miles today, and it took us much longer due to the terrain, but we still got back in time for tea and cakes.

Day 2 Sutton Bank to Osmotherley

Today was one of those days  where it pretty much drizzled or rained all day, so it was quite difficult to get many photos.  Anyway - it was my turn to drive and I had Lin as co-pilot, so we dropped the group at Sutton Bank in the dry and they started the walk which went up gradually onto the moorland.  Lin and I drove to Osmotherley - a medium sized village with a couple of pubs and a shop, but not a lot of parking; so we had to park on the road outside houses.  We put on our waterproofs as it was now raining, and set off to find the path via the smelly toilets!!

The path worked it's way past houses and a reservoir that was being decommissioned and then up; up and more up, to the moor - I don't think we realised that there was going to be quite so much up, as when we eventually met the group we found out that they had hardly had any ups; only a few undulations - Sutton Bank was actually quite high.

Elevenses

As it was raining we turned round and walked the 4 miles back DOWN to the bus where we ate our lunch and made our way back to the house, where we had another leisurely afternoon (what is this thing called leisure - I don't get much at home!)  The dinner is being prepared by my team which included Steve W and John.

Today's total walk was 11.5 miles with a height climbed of  1400 feet,  Blackhambleton Hill was the highest point at 1269 feet.

Gormire lake in the distance, the only natural lake in the North York moors, where there is no water flow in or out of it;  it is left over from the last ice age.  

Day 1, Helmsley to Sutton Bank

Day 1, Helmsley to Sutton Bank

Today’s walk was relatively easy as there weren't too many steep hills and was only 10 miles!  We started at a lovely place called Helmsley that was about ½ hour from Claybank.  Steve W drove and Jacqui was the navigator and companion – we decided that we would take turns to drive each day and that 2 people would be in the bus so that they could drive to the end of each day’s walk and start to walk back to meet the group.

Start of the Cleveland Way.

Some stepping stones near the trout lakes.

 We walked west to Sutton Bank passing beautiful gardens; Rievaulx Abbey -

 (Rievaulx Abbey was founded in 1132 by twelve monks from Clairvaux Abbey as a mission for the colonisation of the north of England and Scotland. It was the first Cistercian abbey in the north. With time it became one of the great Cistercian abbeys of Yorkshire, second only to Fountains Abbey in fame.^{[citation needed]}

Its remote location was ideal for the Cistercians, whose desire was to follow a strict life of prayer and self-sufficiency with little contact with the outside world. ).

- and trout lakes.  We met a man along the route who was going to put lots more trout into the lakes.  It was raining off and on for a while, but stopped after an hour or so and promised to clear up a little.

Jacqui and Steve met us at a picnic spot (for elevenses)

 after walking about 4 miles, then we set off back the way they had walked, through Cold Kirby and back towards the bus.  As we approached the car park, the Cleveland way path went off towards the white horse; this is where the weather turned again and rained quite hard and the wind really picked up – the noise through the trees was really incredible.  Once we looked at the top of the white horse, 

we walked the 1 ½ miles back to the bus where we ate lunch in the bus and then went into the visitor centre to have tea and coffee.

This afternoon has been leisurely and dinner is being prepared.  

Stuey

Stuey has a job - chief sounder of the meal gong!

We've arrived!

We left home at about 9.30 and arrived at 4.15pm; the traffic was good apart from all the 50 mile an hour sections of the motorways.  Pat and Steve arrived ahead of us as they were staying in Leicester at the weekend, and had the kettle on!  Stuey - our new member who many of us stayed with in the Alps is due to arrive soon as is the Sainsburys order.
Amazingly, John and Steve W have just been for a 3 mile run - mad things:)

Chapel Garth is still looking good - we used this accommodation as the last stop when we walked the coast to coast 2 years ago.

So our group are -
Tim S - head map reader
Alan - head chef!
John - Head red wine buyer
Walter - Head red wine drinker and other head map reader.
Steve W - organiser of games and other activities
Steve Y - organiser of accommodation and general dogs body
Pat W - food organiser
Alison Y - other food organiser
Jacqui - photographer and head of gadgets
Lin - head of tidying up
Stuey - Food finisher upper.

Setting up this year's blog

This year's walk is the Cleveland Way which does a loop around the north york moors to the coast at Saltburn by the Sea, and down to Whitby, and Scarborough then finishing in Filey; total mileage of about 108 miles.

We travel up to Great Broughton on Monday in the mini bus to Chapel Garth; a manor house that we stayed in when walking the coast to coast, so we know it's good and the nice thing this time is that we don't have to move accommodation as the walk is more circular.

I see the weather forecast is rain for Monday!!

Pat and I have done the Sainsbury's shop which hopefully will arrive on Monday night.  I think Tim's bought some wine - so things are on course.

Will keep you all posted.  x