Hutton-le-Hole & Lastingham

Every year we get to the end of the summer and I say ‘I wish we’d managed to get over to the Moors for a walk’. The Dales are on our doorstep and we can get to Leyburn or Reeth in about twenty minutes, whereas the North York Moors require a bit more of a drive. Nevertheless it’s absolutely worth it to visit in August when the heather is in spectacular full bloom. This year we finally managed to get over and see the heather for the first time in about three years, and as always, it didn’t disappoint.

We’ve both spent the first few weeks of August getting over a lingering cold, so for our first foray back out into the countryside we chose a shorter four mile circular walk from the North York Moors national park website. We parked in the national park car park in Hutton-le-Hole, getting parked with no issues at 9am on a Sunday in August – it was full up when we got back a few hours later though! Parking is pay and display and the money gathered helps look after the national park and the toilets in the car park, so it’s absolutely going to a worthy cause.

The walk starts off by passing through Hutton-le-Hole, a charming chocolate box village with sheep grazing on every available grassy surface. As well as a few dog friendly teashops and cafes, the village is also home to the Ryedale Folk Museum, which welcomes dogs on leads. On the edge of the village we picked up a footpath leading across fields before entering a small shady wood.

Leaving the wood, we walked for a short way along a country road (where we did see a fair few slow moving cars) before picking up a track onto the moor. The heather was out in full bloom and was absolutely lovely – I was shocked that we didn’t see more people out enjoying it, especially as the weather was fantastic too. A fairly easy amble across the moor brought us to the village of Lastingham, which we passed through to enter another small wood.

After a bit of an uphill climb, we joined another road leading into Spraunton (where we again saw no people but plenty of sheep). Leaving the village via a farm, a walled grassy lane leads you nearly all the way back to the start at Hutton-le-Hole.

Overall, this was the perfect hike to brush away the cobwebs after a few quiet weeks. While there are no prolonged or steep climbs or descents, there’s enough up and down to keep things interesting, and it was fantastic to see the heather out on the moor. We just need to time it better next time so that the pub is open when we get back to Hutton-le-Hole!

Dog friendly rating – 3.5/5. There are a few short woodland sections where you can let your dog off the lead, but the rest of the time, expect to see sheep at any moment. Additionally, even in the woods you’re not completely safe – we saw quite literally dozens of pheasants, and for this reason Merry stayed safely on the lead. He did enjoy having a splash in the streams we crossed along the way, especially as it was a warm day. While there are a few road sections, we were able hear or see cars coming with plenty of time to get out of the way, and there were no stiles to worry about either.

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