Tabular Hills stretch along the southern part of the North York Moors National Park. The land rises gently from south to north and is cut by a series of dales that leave tabular uplands between them. The gentle slopes often end abruptly at their northern ends in a series of shapely knolls, or nabs, that look out towards the rolling moorlands at the heart of the national park. From east to west, from Scarborough to Helmsley, the more prominent nabs include Barns Cliff, Langdale Rigg End, Blakey Topping, Whinny Nab, Levisham Moor, the Nab, Boonhill Common, Birk Nab, Helmsley Bank, Easterside Hill and Hawnby Hill. Prominent dales from east to west include the Forge Valley, Hole of Horcum, Newtondale, lower Rosedale, lower Farndale, Sleightholm Dale, Riccal Dale, Ash Dale, Beck Dale and lower Ryedale.
The rocks that make up the Tabular Hills are seldom exposed but belong to the Middle Oolite Group in the Corallian series of the Jurassic period and, hence, are around 170 million years old. They are essentially a limestone and lime-rich sandstone series, porous enough to allow surface water to drain away rapidly. In the more deeply cut dales the bedrock is formed from the older Oxford Clay, which is impervious and supports the flow of rivers and streams. Some areas of the Tabular Hills have been turned over to commercial forestry. The land is very fertile and easily ploughed but the soil is often too thin to support good root crops. However, grain crops such as wheat, barley and oats are grown in rotation, and oilseed rape blazes yellow early in summer.
As if to celebrate the distinct nature of these gentle heights, the waymarked Tabular Hills Walk has been established. It traverses the low hills and intervening dales from the coast at Scalby Mills to the bustling market town of Helmsley, a distance of 80km (50 miles). The signposts and waymarks for the route feature directional arrows and a Tabular Hills logo. The route has been designated a regional trail and is an initiative of the North York Moors National Park Authority.
Ten walking routes through the Tabular Hills are described, including two routes around Hackness, three in the Lockton and Levisham area and one each around Hutton-le-Hole, Gillamoor, Rievaulx Moor, Helmsley and Hawnby. Some of these take in the distinctive nabs, while others wander more through the dales. From time to time, on the higher ground, it is possible to look along the range and see how the higher nabs end abruptly, and the High Moors then stretch northwards into the heart of the North York Moors.
WALK 1
West Ayton, Hackness and the Forge Valley
| Start/finish | Ye Olde Forge Valley Inn, West Ayton, SE 987 847 |
| Distance | 15km (9½ miles) |
| Total ascent/descent | 240m (790ft) |
| Time | 5hrs |
| Terrain | Easy walking along woodland paths and field paths, as well as farm tracks and minor roads |
| Maps | OS Landranger 101; OS Explorer OL27 South |
| Refreshments | Ye Olde Forge Valley Inn at West Ayton, East Ayton Lodge Hotel and Denison Arms at East Ayton, Everley Country House Café is off-route between Mowthorpe and Hackness, and Hackness Grange Hotel is off-route near Hackness |
| Transport | Regular Scarborough & District buses serve West and East Ayton from Scarborough, Pickering and Helmsley |
The River Derwent once flowed straight from the moors to the sea, but at the end of the Ice Age its course was blocked and water overflowed, carving out the Forge Valley, which was later choked by wildwoods. These trees were harvested for charcoal to fuel small ironworks in the 14th century. The River Derwent repeatedly flooded the low-lying Vale of Pickering, so in the 18th century the Sea Cut was engineered to take the river along its original course to the sea. This walk explores the wooded Forge Valley, takes a look at the Sea Cut and offers the chance to visit the lovely estate village of Hackness.
Start at Ye Olde Forge Valley Inn at West Ayton. Follow the A170 road across the bridge to East Ayton and turn left along a road called Castlegate, signposted for the Forge Valley. Pass the East Ayton Lodge Hotel and walk down the road. Follow the road until a public footpath (not a public bridleway) is signposted on the right, flanked by fencing for a few paces. Walk up a broad woodland path parallel to a deep groove. Turn left near the top of the wooded slope and follow a path just inside Ruston Cliff Wood, with occasional views out across fields. Pass attractive pantiled stone buildings at Osborne Lodge and walk straight ahead. Fork left downhill, walking straight ahead to pass an information board.
FORGE VALLEY WOODS NATIONAL NATURE RESERVE
Towards the end of the Ice Age, around 10,000 years ago, a mass of stagnant ice dammed the broad valley, causing water to form the temporary Lake Hackness. This overflowed and carved the deep, steep-sided Forge Valley. The fields above the valley lie on soft Hambleton Oolite, while its sides are formed from hard Lower Calcareous Grit, and its floor is impervious Oxford Clay. The valley became choked with wildwoods, which in turn provided charcoal for small iron foundries in the 14th century. This is one of the best valley-side mixed deciduous woodlands in Yorkshire.
Continue along the path, eventually reaching a parking space at Green Gate. Turn left, then right down a road signposted for Hackness, where there is access to a viewpoint on the left at Hazel Head. Walk down the road to cross Mowthorpe Bridge over the Sea Cut.
THE SEA CUT
The River Derwent has its source on Fylingdales Moor, a mere spit and a throw from the North Sea. It begins by flowing towards the sea, but only 6km (4 miles) short of it, the river suddenly swings west and heads far inland. Its waters eventually spill into the North Sea via the Humber Estuary after a circuitous journey of 240km (150 miles). The Sea Cut, engineered by the distinguished inventor Sir George Cayley (a pioneer in the science of aerodynamics, amongst other things) in the early 18th century, diverts the headwaters of the River Derwent into Scalby Beck, passing floodwater straight into the sea instead of allowing it to inundate the Vale of Pickering.
The Sea Cut uses the original course of the River Derwent from Mowthorpe Bridge
Pass Mowthorpe Farm and walk a little way up the road, then turn right as indicated by a footpath sign. Go through a kissing gate and turn right to walk downhill a little, then turn left to walk up a grassy groove alongside an old hedgerow. Go through a gate, then turn left up to another gate that gives access to Hawthorn Wood. Follow a clear path across and up the wooded slope, then walk beside a field to reach Suffield Ings farm, at around 160m (525ft). Keep to the right of the buildings as marked and leave along the farm access road. Keep straight on at a junction, but later, when the track swings right, leave it by following a path down to the left. This goes down a wooded valley and passes a crumbling limekiln. When a road is reached, turn left; it is hardly necessary to walk on the road, since as one path joins it, another heads off to the left. Hackness village and Walk 2 are easily reached from here.)
The path climbs a wooded slope, followed by a grassy slope, apparently for no other reason than to provide a fine view of Hackness Hall. Having achieved this aim, the path turns right downhill, crosses a stile and enters a wood, then runs gradually downhill across a slope. Leave the wood at another stile and contour across a grassy slope overlooking Mill Farm and the Derwent Valley. Turn right downhill as marked to cross a road, followed by a nearby footbridge over the River Derwent. Walk straight ahead alongside a field and follow an access road past some cottages in the hamlet of Wrench Green. Turn left along a minor road, pass a junction at Cockrah Foot and keep straight ahead at a junction marked
