Herriot Way Day 1

Day 1 - Saturday 15 April 2023

Aysgarth to Hawes (12.1 miles)

Fudge's kit hangs ready as we prepare to leave Butt House on Day 1. Fudge would also be accompanied by one of his favourite toys - his squeaky Duck.

From Butt House in Keld, Chris dropped the three of us off at the Bus Stop in Aysgarth near the start. Fudge gives us his "come on then, let's have it" look as we ready our rucksacks for the first leg to Hawes.

The War Memorial in Aysgarth

There is no official start point (or finish for that matter) for the Herriot Way although it is generally accepted that the village of Aysgarth is where most walkers set out from. We therefore decided to walk the traditional route from the guide book (link here) which is written starting from Aysgarth although walkers can begin from any of the main villages located on the route. Aysgarth (from the Norse meaning "open space in the oak trees") is located either side of the A684 and is basically a village of two halves.

From the War Memorial the route heads to the left along a lane that runs adjacent to the A684. After roughly a 100 yards on the left and between two houses there is a gap which leads to this old gate.

From the old gate the route heads over several fields to reach Aysgarth Mill and leads on to a farm access track.

A short distance past the farm a signpost is followed in the direction of Harpur Wath

The route joins a delightful path along the southern bank of the River Ure

Exiting the riverside path, a short road walk of approximately 350 yards along the A684 leads to the footbridge over the River Ure at Harpur Wath

With the River Ure to the left the route crosses the stepping stones over Eller Beck

Fudge sulks because the bank of the River Ure is too high for him to be able to dive in and arse about

Looking back along the river at the flood damage which covers the original path - the route diverts to this point via the wall to the left

A kissing gate leads up to the remains of an old railway track bed

Up on the old railway track bed

The line was completed in 1878 and was used by the North Eastern Railway Company between Leyburn & Garsdale Head. The line provided a railway service to Wensleydale and ran passenger trains until 1954 and goods trains for a bit longer. It closed for good in 1959.

The farm buildings at Nappa Mill

From Nappa Mill a stone path heads over fields to Askrigg - I wonder if the cafe will be open?? As can be seen, Fudge is now on his lead and whilst he is more scared of the sheep than they are of him and poses no threat to them, unfortunately the farmer doesn't know that. If in doubt, always have your dog on a lead around livestock, particularly during lambing season.

The locals were really placid & welcoming

Approaching Askrigg

St Oswald's Church in Askrigg

The Market Cross in Askrigg

As it was a Saturday both Tea Rooms were pretty busy therefore we sat and had a snack at the former village water pump erected in 1849. To the right is Skeldale House which was the home of the veterinary practice featured in the original TV Series of All Creatures Great & Small - there is even a fully operational Austin 10 outside the front door.

From the church in Askrigg the route heads to the west along a lane to reach a gate on the right signposted to Mill Gill Falls. The hand gate was possibly the narrowest one we have ever come across - it was tiny.

Slithering through the hand gate - good job I am built like a racing snake eh!

The footbridge over Mill Gill near the disused West Saw Mill

Looking to the fell of Addlebrough

Mill Gill Force

To access the waterfall means going off route slightly but it is only a matter of about 200 yards or so - it is well worth the detour

Mill Gill Force in flow (Click Play to view)

Fudge sporting his Spaniel Aid finery at Mill Gill Force

As we were leaving Mill Gill Force we met two young chaps who were walking as part of a Duke of Edinburgh Award scheme group. As part of their challenge they were hoping to get as many pictures taken with a stuffed Cow. Clearly we were honoured they asked us and in turn they were happy to pose with Fudge and his Duck.

The remnants of a lime kiln above Mill Gill

The hamlet of Skell Gill. Ordinarily the route crosses the bridge over Skellgill Beck however there was a diversion due to renovations taking place.

At Shaw Cote we called in on Jo at Cherish Glamping who had been following our progress via the Spaniel Aid Facebook page. She kindly made us a drink and we had a wander around their lovely facility - a bonus was we met Snoops & Tiny, Jo's Springer Spaniels......................

............ and the Three Little Pigs

Passing Litherskew the route continues over lush green fields towards Sedbusk

Looking back to Litherskew

Approaching Sedbusk

After a brief rest & snack in Sedbusk we passed through the village alongside the Village Green. On the left near the bench a finger post points the way to Simonstone.

The finger post pointing the way to Simonstone - the path passes between two houses and into open fields.

Arriving in Simonstone - notice the different spelling of "Hardraw" on the finger post.

The extremely plush Simonstone Hall Hotel. Staying here is way, way out of our price bracket and the cost of drinks calls for one of those eyebrow raising "Jesus Christ" moments therefore, unlike other times we have been here we passed right through. The Simonstone, whilst a very nice place is not without its share of incident notably when in March 2015 an allegedly drunken Jeremy Clarkson assaulted Top Gear producer Oisin Tymon. Apparently the fisticuffs happened because Jezza could not get any hot scran and therefore took it out on poor old Oisin on the patio to the left of shot. Cashing in on this, the hotel then placed a Chilli Burger on the menu called "The Clarkson" - apparently it packed a bit of a punch.

Looking down sloping fields to Hardraw

The ornate bench near Hardraw in memory of Lawrence Dewes from Hawes who was tragically killed in April 2019 aged just 25

Almost at Hardraw - I wonder if the pub will be open??

At the time of our walk the pub was closed however as of May 2023 it had reopened for drinks only.

For those that are familiar with this area you will probably be aware of the popular Sheep Dog demonstrations that take place weekly near Haylands Bridge. A couple of years ago we had a chat with a local near this spot who informed us that the annotated painted stones were in memory of the Sheep Dogs that formed part of the demonstrations over the years.