Cleveland Way

Osmotherley → Kilburn White Horse

Distance: 13.91 miles
Ascent: 486 metres
Duration: 4 hours 57 minutes

The Hambleton Hills didn't get the memo
« Not walked | Not walked »

A brief amble around the outskirts of Osmotherley took us onto the edge of the Hambleton Hills, an area of heather-rich grouse moorland. As we skirted Black Hambleton we were gently snowed on, adding to that still lying; the general thaw hadn't reached here yet. Despite the drifts and slush, this was an easy, mostly level stretch that quickly brought us into woodland at Steeple Cross.

The Cleveland Way leaves the old drove road just before High Paradise Farm, and as tempting as it was to stop at the tea room, we headed south through a mixture of woodland and open fields, following the edge of the escarpment. The ridge swings back and forth, offering panoramic views across the plain to the east, before winding up Sutton Bank.

The residual snow — deep in places, melting to wide puddles of brown water — hid the outlines of some of the tumuli and disused quarry pits that mark the area, and made for slow going as we negotiated the limestone cliff edge. Our persistence was rewarded as we reached the end of Sutton Bank, accompanied by a glider taking off from the adjacent airstrip, and took what local author James Herriot claimed to be "England's finest" view to the south and east (though it was a little too hazy for us to agree).

The white horse hill figure facing Kilburn is slightly less majestic — a greyish, lumpen nag close-up — but easier to appreciate from the village below.

Although not on the path, it's worth visiting the village of Kilburn — particularly the church and pub — to see the woodwork of local craftsmen who adorn each of their pieces with a tiny church mouse. Founder Robert Thompson ("The Mouseman") is buried in the cemetery.