During the last week of September, I was lucky enough to be
invited on a six day trail ride to finish off my friends’ Coast to Coast by
horseback "project". Over the last few years, Bridget and Sara have slowly been
riding from west to east and this last 60 mile section through the North York
Moors was the last part of the jigsaw. Sara and her horse Lexi are based over
in North Yorkshire and with Lexi being stabled at Nether Silton, this became
our starting point for the week ahead. Sara did all the legwork to find us some
horse-friendly accommodation, but what we did not really plan was our route! We
had an idea, but we did not make a firm plan as in our experience we needed to
check local knowledge along the way. The aim was to ride a maximum of around 10
to 15 miles a day and we needed to carry our kit and food for 2.5 days, with
Sara’s other half John prepped to resupply us with clean clothes and food
mid-week.
Day 1 – Nether Silton to Easterside Farm, Hawnby (10 miles)
We had brought Monty pony and Hope horse over the day before
we started and they had a night’s stay at Lexi’s stables. Hope saw the
saddlebags and gave us a look as if to say ‘where are we going this time’, but
as this was only Monty’s second trip away from home, he was very much aware
that something was afoot, but what! Monty, though, took his lead from Hope and
stood calmly while we got ready, which seemed to take ages as we had the added
saddlebags to get right too.
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| Monty all ready to go |
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| At the beginning, from the left Bridget and Hope, myself and Monty and Sara and Lexi |
Once ready, we set off from Nether Silton and headed up
through the trees of the local forestry, passing through Nether Silton Moor
towards the ridge of the old drove road called Hambleton Street, which is now
part of the Cleveland Way National Trail. Once on the ridge we headed south,
taking in the fantastic views across moor and the lowlands of Yorkshire. Here
we were treated to a couple of red kites swooping and hunting over the moor and
met a few mountain bikers also enjoying a day out.
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| up through the forest |
When we reached Kepwick Quarry we turned left and started
travelling in an easterly direction towards Hawnby. On the OS map this is
marked with green dots, which means it’s an unclassified road/green lane and
open to all. This route takes you gradually down to the valley bottom and for
the last part of the ride we led, which included a pretty steep part. We were
hoping the valley bottom was going to be flat, but instead it was very much up
and down! Hawnby village was a welcome sight with its red-tiled roofs and I
think if the pub had been open we may not have made it to Easterside Farm. We
carried on down and up and made it to our first overnight stay. We had a warm
welcome and quickly sorted out the horses, who were very much ready for some
field time. We then sorted ourselves out and that evening enjoyed a lovely home-cooked
meal from our host.
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| Hawnby village |
Day 2 – Easterside Farm, Hawnby to Bonfield Ghyll Farm, near
Bransdale (9.35 miles)
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| Setting off from Easterside Farm |
If a route looks straightforward on a map, I am learning to
be suspicious! We had been told to avoid the second bridleway on the right from
Easterside Farm as it was overgrown, but we were not expecting to get into a
muddle on the route we chose. As Day One had gone very well I think we had all
gone into relaxed mode. We had a super breakfast, the horses were happy and we had a dry morning again! We set off and after about 50m, Monty and I had an
issue. I had not tied my lead rope to my saddle properly and leant over Monty’s
head to retrieve the rope and my saddle slipped! Monty luckily froze like me on
board and I slowly slid off and ended up in a heap on the floor! All fine apart
from now we had to start again with tacking up! It became apparent that Monty
had slimmed down overnight and his girth was not tight enough! With the saddle
sorted, we started again and after turning left out of Easterside Farm we took
the first bridleway on the right to High Banniscue. The bridleway then hit the
moorland line and this is where we started to get into a muddle, mainly because
the route is not on the ground and everyone is using different paths. In the
end we kept the moorland dry-stone wall on our left and followed this down to
the bridleway gate that goes back into farmland. We were relieved to find
another bridleway gate, but once on the route it did not feel right and was it
was overgrown. We were in fact on the overgrown bridleway we had been warned
about. We turned around and made our way back to the field where we had gone
wrong. The route went past a ruined farmstead down a steep hill and then into a
scrubby area that was boggy. We scrambled through this and found a lovely well-built
bridleway bridge! It was a sign we were on the right route again and a relief
we had found a way out!! A simpler way to tackle this section of the route
would have been to turn left out of Easterside Farm and then take the first
lane on the right and just before you get to Nova Scotia Farm you turn right
and pick up the green dotted route/green lane to Bumper Castle. This area is part of the Saint Aelred’s Pilgrim
Trail (web link below) and this is their recommended route. If I was more local
I would be going back to see how to make this area better and work out the best
way to use these bridleways.
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| Monty learn to walk though heather up to his tummy! |
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| back on track |
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| Lunch stop |
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| Saint Aelred’s Pilgrim Trail waymarker |
Once over the bridleway bridge there is a ford to cross and
then we picked up the green dotted route/green lane heading towards Bumper
Castle. We were very relieved to be moving in the right direction again and
could once more take in the views which were back to far-reaching moorland.
We followed this route all the way to Malkin Bower. The last
section is steep and stony and we led down this. If you wanted to avoid this
steep hill, you can take the bridleway past Wethercote Farm into Bilsdale
valley to get to Malkin Bower.
We then picked up the lane to Fangdale Beck and the byway to
Low Mill. Here, there is a herd of alpacas, who look innocent enough but some
horses think these creatures are alien beings, even those who live with sheep
and dairy cows at home! Say no more, but we were pleased to say goodbye to that
part of the route and it made the next short section of main road seem easy.
Once you have tackled the road, you turn right up the bridleway through
Kirkhill Plantation, which is another place that seems to have very little use.
Here there were a couple of trees and branches down across the path and the
horses did really well scrambling up and around the banks to get through.
Once leaving the woodland the bridleway takes you through
fields that had very well-behaved cows, who just watched us pass through. The
route then takes you onto the tops and you reach the moor gate. Here, it
started raining more and it was time for our big coats. As with part of the
last moor, the bridleway route on the ground was not present, but this time the
bridleway had been substituted for very well-made shooting tracks. These tracks
were a welcome sight especially as while we crossed the moor our visibility was
getting worse and our view had been replaced by thick fog. The moor seemed very
distant from normal life and we were thankful for our OS app’s GPS that kept us
going in the right direction. Finally, the track started to descend again and
as we went down we could see Bonfield Ghyll Farm hugging the side of the moor
surrounded by its green in-bye fields. The farm looked busy gathering the sheep
and horses watched with curiosity. The shooting track met the tarmac lane and
we worked our way down and then up to Bonfield Ghyll. We had a warm welcome and
were greeted with ‘you made it’ and it really did feel like we did! The horses
were now getting into this trail riding life and were keen to see their field
accommodation. We sorted the horses out and then got the fire lit in our
cottage for the night and put the kettle on! It had been a bit of a day, but we
all definitely had the feeling of achievement. Sara had the previous weekend
delivered food for a pasta bake, which was just the kind of food we needed.
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| Floggy on the moor to Bonfield Ghyll |
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| track to Bonfield Ghyll |
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| A very welcomed fire in our cozy cottage for the night |
Day 3 – Bonfield Ghyll, near Bransdale to Abbey Farm,
Rosedale Abbey (12.68 miles)
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Start of Day 3
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| Heading to Bransdale |
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| Looking down to Bransdale |
Day three had the potential to be a long day and as we set
off, we still did not have a firm plan in our mind as to how we were going to
get to Rosedale Abbey. The issue was how to get across Blakey Ridge. There is a
bridleway along Rosedale valley, but it ends at Moorlands Farm and then we were
unsure if we could get through the moor gate that links to Blakey Ridge. Should
we risk it and give it a go, or come up with a plan B which involved riding
along the dismantled railway line and down Rosedale Chimney Bank, one of the
steepest roads in England. Plan A could work, but we wanted to be sure so
searched for the telephone number of Moorlands Farm. Luckily they do B & B
and when we got some mobile signal we gave them a ring as we rode along, but it
went to the answerphone. A rambling message was left and we carried on in the hope
that they would get back to us.
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| On the Moor between Bransdale and Farndale |
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| going up to Blakey Ridge |
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| At the top of Blakey Ridge |
As yesterday was full-on, we started from Bonfield Ghyll by
taking in the quiet lane down to Bransdale, working our way around the valley
to Cow Sike. We then picked up the green dotted route over West Gill Head Moor
and as we were going up, the phone rang! It was Moorlands Farm B & B, we
had a good chat and learnt they are horse friendly too and of course it was OK
to go through the moor gate! Big smiles all around, especially as I got the
feeling Sara had a good story about taking her old fell pony up Rosedale
Chimney Bank! The moor today was clear of fog and we started to get good views
down into Farndale and we could also see Blakey Ridge, which seemed a long way
away! Up here there are good shooting tracks to ride on the line of the
bridleway and it brings you down to Monket House. Here we turned right, then
left and worked our way through the valley up to Blakey Ridge. As we started to
get to the steep part of the road I could feel Monty was hitting a wall of
tiredness, a bit like when my kids were small. Like with the kids we rested, he
had an apple and I got off and led. We finally got to the top of the ridge and
here, we had a busy road to cross. We then worked our way down the track to
Moorlands Farm and stopped to thank them for calling back. They also kindly
lent us a bucket of water for the horses. After a bit of rest we set off again
heading down the bridleway to Rosedale Abbey, here Monty was a bit shocked to
see humans again and we encountered herds of walkers! We seemed to be leaving
the quiet wild moors behind, but the softer valley landscape was very much
welcomed. The bridleway turns into a lane, which leads down to Rosedale Abbey.
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| Rosedale |
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| One of the goats from Abbey Farm |
The horses, Bridget and I were staying at Abbey Farm and
Sara was staying at the White Horse Farm Inn with her husband, John. John was
key for our trip as he had our clean clothes and food for the next couple of
days! At Abbey Farm we were given a good
welcome and the horses had a lovely field for the night where they made friends
with the resident horses. This is a goat farm and I must say I came away
thinking maybe we needed goats. We stayed in a nice shepherd’s hut and had
dinner and breakfast up at the White Horse Farm Inn.
Day 4 – Rosedale Abbey to Moorside Country B & B, Brown
Howe (8 miles)
Today we were confident about our route as we had asked Gill
from Moorside Country B & B where to go. Moorside specialises in providing
holidays with your horse and it turns out one of her clients had ridden to
Rosedale only a week before our trip. This took some pressure off us and we
started the day in good spirits after a good breakfast at the White Horse Farm
Inn. Turning left out of Abbey Farm we had a main road section, which was
pretty quiet for an average Thursday morning. We travelled along the road until
Yatts Farm. Here we then took the bridleway up through Gate Plantation. This
bridleway had a Cumbrian-style steepness to it and the kind of hill my retired
horse Ryan would have loved to tackle. Monty though gave me his look so I led
up the hill. While we had been away he’s been learning loads of new skills and
for the second time of the trip I led him by placing myself not at the front
but at the rear. You need a long lead rope to be able to do this and it’s a bit
like long reining with one rein and it is in fact a safer way of getting up a
steep narrow path if you need to lead. If I was at the front there is the
danger of Monty accidentally standing on me in the keenness of getting up the
hill.
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| Leaving Rosedale |
Once at the top of the hill we started to work our way
through Cropton Forest. This is Forestry England land and you are permitted to
ride on all of their tracks. Our route was therefore a mix of bridleways,
byways and forest track routes. We passed through Rock House Wood, St James’s
Farm, Muffles Rigg, Stape and over to Brown Howe where Moorside Country B &
B is located. We only met three walkers who were doing a similar trip on foot
in the opposite direction. We arrived early, which meant the horses had a
really good afternoon and night off before our longer day on Friday. Gill made
us a lovely evening meal, breakfast and packed lunch and we were again very
much looked after.
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| Cropton Forest |
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| The only the people we met on day 4 were three walkers doing a similar trip in the opposite direction |
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| Horse chilling in their Moorside field. There was a little drama as the red deer rutting season had started and the horses could hear the stags roaring! |
Day 5 – Moorside Country B & B to Farsyde Farm Campsite,
Robin Hood’s Bay (16 miles)
Much thought had gone into day five. I personally was a
little apprehensive as this was going to be the furthest Monty had ever gone,
but during the last four days of riding he really had proved himself to be a
brilliant trail pony meaning that I also had every confidence that we could do
this. Gill from Moorside and Heidi from Farsyde Farm Campsite helped us with
our route and we hoped we had come up with the shortest and easiest route, but
it was still a bit of a “see how it goes” situation. We needed to get to Robin
Hood’s Bay for 4pm as Sara had a horse Uber transport booked to get home so we
made an earlier start and were riding by 8:30am.
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| Simon Howe |
From Moorside Country B and B we turned left and worked our
way down to the bridleway that goes over Simon Howe. Here we met our first
obstacle for the day as the bridleway bridge leading onto the moor had a broken
deck. Luckily it was just a single timber board that was broken. Bridget
dismounted and had a good jump up and down over the bridge and found all the other
deck boards were OK. The bridge was over a steep stream, meaning we really
needed to use the bridge. We dismounted and led over the bridge, watching the
horses carefully looking at the hole they needed to avoid (note - the damaged
bridge has been reported to North York Moors National Park Authority).
Once over the bridge we were on a good moor path leading up
to Simon Howe on Goathland Moor. This is a Bronze Age round cairn and has
fantastic far-reaching views. From here we worked our way down the moor and
came out near Moorgates. The moor path is a good route with the last part being
a little bit steep and covered in bracken, but it is all very doable. There is
then a short section of road under the railway and then we picked up the
bridleway to Birchwood. This then leads to the main road to Goathland, where we
turned right up the hill to the parking area on the tops and took the green
dotted track to cross the A169.
Once we crossed the A169 we could see the sea and headed
down the bridleway towards Newton House Plantation. We then headed north and east
around the Plantation, passing by Leas Head Farm, Foss Farm, Midge Hall and
this then brought us out at the junction with the B1416. Last year a lot of the
moor on the Robin Hood’s Bay road bridleway had been hit by fire, meaning the
other route around Newton House Plantation is currently not as good as the
route we took, but this meant that we now had around a 1.5 km section of busy
road to complete. We turned right onto the road and we really went into let’s
get this done mode and trotted most of the way with breaks at other road
junctions to let cars pass. We reached the Coast to Coast National Trail path
and were very much thankful to the drivers who were so patient and super proud
of our horses that were brilliant.
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| Lunch stop after crossing the busy A169 |
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| Near Midge Hall |
We then worked our way across the moor called Greystone
Hills and picked up the road to Fylingthorpe. Before Fylingthorpe we turned
right and picked up the bridleway south-east, the white road and the bridleway
to Fyling Hall. After this we took the road down to Low Farm and onto Mark Lane
to Farsyde Farm campsite. We arrived just after 3pm and had a warm welcome from
Heidi and arrived in plenty of time for Lexi’s horse transport. The horses had
done amazingly well and we could not have been prouder. Bridget went back with
Sara to get the car and trailer and I stayed to make sure the horses were happy
in their field. Bridget got back as it was just starting to go dark and we
quickly got the tent up and headed down into Robin Hood’s Bay village for a
well-earned fish and chip tea from The Bay Hotel.
Our day 5 route was brilliant, but it does have the busy section of road and therefore this is one area that I would revisit. You could do day 5 via RAF Fylingdales Radar base and exit Cropton Forest via Levisham Station. There would, however, still be busy roads to cross and it would also, I believe, be a longer day. However, with it being longer there may be an opportunity to add in another overnight stay.
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| Great view of the sea above Fylingthorpe |
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Nearly there
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| Arrived! |
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| End of Day 5 |
Day 6 – A tootle to the sea
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| Sunrise |
After a blustery night in the tent (a tad windy!) we woke early to a beautiful sunrise. We got up surprisingly quickly and after a cup of tea, tacked up the horses to get down to Robin Hood’s Bay village. No Coast to Coast trip is really complete without going to the official end place. We had a very relaxed wander down to the village along the lanes and the Cinder Track (a fabulous 21.7-mile multi-user disused railway trail). The last part into the village centre is very steep and therefore we opted to lead down this lane. The tide was in and we therefore only needed to go down the ramp to touch the sea with our hooves! A few other Coast to Coast people were starting their walk and with other people around it made for a nice atmosphere to have a few chats to others in the village. A great end to an amazing week away doing what we love best.
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| Cinder Track |
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| Made it to the sea! |
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| The hill back up |
** Photo credit - with thanks to friends Bridget Pickthall and
Sara Lane for use of their fantastic photos **
Maps Links to each day ride
The below links opens the route map in the OS maps app/website. You can also find these routes on the OS map by using the find route tool and zooming in on the start place after ticking horse riding as an activity.
Note - Our ride took place between 28 September and 3 October 2026 and others users should make the necessary checks that these routes are suitable for their use.
Places to stay and Other Useful Info
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