Yorkshire Wolds Way

South Cave → Goodmanham

Distance: 11.30 miles
Ascent: 375 metres
Duration: 3 hours 38 minutes

A bit of south in the north
« Not walked | Not walked »

For all its grandeur, and despite its quirks, the Cave Castle Country Club is a walker-friendly hotel. We weren't the only people at breakfast with a Wolds Way guidebook, and as we checked out the receptionist made sure that we'd "picked up some snacks for the walk" at breakfast. (Suddenly the individually wrapped pieces of homemade lemon drizzle cake at the cold buffet didn't seem out of place.)

The walk itself was very much a case of "getting on with the job," following a path that felt like many other National Trails of the south. Lots more chalk downland, reminiscent of the Ridgeway. Lots of straight, old, green lanes that reminded me of Peddars Way. At one point we even saw a vineyard, like on the North and South Downs. And to remind us that the weather still isn't settled, a dash of cold wind that for once had swung round to face us.

The countryside here is getting bigger: the route took us across larger hills, and at one point through an extended dry valley, speckled with stony chalk. The landscape felt more undulating than yesterday's gentle introduction, as we turned away from the brown Humber estuary and headed deeper into the Wolds.

Even accounting for the better weather we've been surprised to see so many people on the Yorkshire Wolds Way. Our B&B hosts for tonight provided the answer: the trail has featured on TV a number of times this past year.