Pickering Wednesday

Levisham to Pickering walk.

We had a day out at Pickering, a scenic train journey from Pickering to Levisham and a good 8 miles hike back.

We left the very picturesque Pickering railway station on a train that goes up the valley for 30 mins or so. We thought it would be quiet mid-week but the train was packed with mostly foreign tourists.

Leaving Levisham station (which , bizarrely, is no where near Levisham village ) we crossed the railway line and went ahead on the lane leaving it in a few yards via a footpath signed 'Levisham' on the right.

The path rises steeply through woodland, then continues ahead crossing a large field to rise to a gate.

Through the gate we turned right on a wide bridleway. We ignored a path rising to our left within 20 yds and continued ahead dropping downhill to eventually meet a 3 way sign. Here we continued ahead. soon the railway track was  close by on our right. We entered a wood and kept right at a fork then had to negotiate a large tree that had fallen blocking the bridleway.

Soon Farwath was seen ahead and our path crossed a field to a gate where we turned right towards houses there.

After crossing the railway line and then Pickering Beck ,via a small footbridge, we took the path opposite rising steeply for a few yds before we turned left on a lovely path adjacent to the beck.

We followed the beck for some time before the path gradually leaves the water and rises towards a large metal gate.

Here we found the ideal place to have a sandwich, sitting back to back on a tree stump made for two. Well, one and a half really.

Although the gate appeared to be locked, in fact it wasn't, and it was the route we were to follow.

A good track now follows the railway (now on our left) through the valley.

All along the valley there were Blackcap, Whitethroat, Chiffchaff and Willow Warbler all competing to be heard, but not seen!!

We didn't have much time to dawdle as we had 8 miles to walk.

We came across a pr. Red Legged Partridge on the path and they soon scurried off and then we saw a broken 'mushroom'  coloured egg. A few yds further along a second broken  egg appeared and then a third. 

In all we saw 8 broken eggs covering about 200 yds of the track?

The track eventually leaves the wood at a sign 'Pickering Woodland' and a couple of oak trees there ,bear plaques showing that they were planted by The Queen and Prince Phillip in 1975.

The trees had not grown as tall as we would have expected, in those 40 years - just goes to show how old really large Oaks must be.

After exiting the wood we met a lane where we turned left.

This lane reaches a road where we turned left again to reach Newbridge.

Here we turned right over the railway line and followed the road to cross the beck. Soon we turned left into woodland and followed a path that shadows the road. 

This path soon meets the road, which we followed back to Pickering Station.

The walk took 3hrs 20 mins which is very good going for us old fogies!

A few pics:

I've no idea what has made these

 (OK! - the one on the left is a tractor)