Back in May we started the Shepherd’s Round, a 64km circular alternative to the more popular Lyke Wake Walk. We’ve said for years that we need to take advantage of some of our local long distance paths and tackle them in shorter sections, and this year is the year we’re actually putting words into action! After cutting our first leg short due to incoming rain, this left us with a short 3.5 mile section to finish off before setting out on the next, longer chunk of the route, unless we wanted an extra long walk next time (spoiler: we didn’t).
Having spent the Saturday of this particular weekend slowly melting into the sofa, we were very relieved to find the Sunday much cooler and an acceptable temperature to take the dogs for a walk. The weather looked mixed at best, mostly dry in the morning with showers coming in from lunchtime, so with this in mind we wanted a shorter walk and settled on the next leg of the Shepherd’s Round. I can’t believe it’s already been a month since we were last out on the route!
Arriving at Lordstones nice and early (around quarter past 8 on a Sunday morning), parking was both free and plentiful. The route continues here on a clear track, which is very well way-marked as for pretty much all of this section the Shepherd’s Round follows the Coast to Coast trail. Heading gradually uphill, the climb at the beginning is the first of several on this section of the walk. It is at least both short and not too steep!
Once we’d reached the top of the incline, we were rewarded with far reaching views over the (rather flat) countryside surrounding Darlington and Middlesbrough, with Roseberry Topping demarcating the edge of the hills in the distance. Walking along here is very pleasant, with the view continuing and an excellent paved path – I don’t understand people (like Sam) who like traipsing through bog and heather.
This nice flat stroll gave ample time for us (me) to catch our breath, before the route dropped down and then immediately regained the height we’d lost: the descent here is steeper than the climb back up though. At the top of the second hill we could see across to the most interesting feature of the walk for the day, the Wainstones. A rocky sandstone outcrop, they’re a popular spot with both locals and visitors, offering not just a good view but a minor scrambly section as you traverse through the stones.
Of course, the Wainstones were halfway up (yet another) hill that we had to climb. In the end I was glad we’d split this section off from the first leg as it packed in a fair amount of ascent! Happily though this was the final incline before we dropped back down to the car we’d parked earlier in the large lay-by near the route.
Dog friendly rating: 3.5/5. This section of the Shepherd’s Round is stile and road walking free, although the presence of livestock (sheep and cows) and sheer drops meant we kept our dogs on the lead throughout. At only 3.5 miles it’s fairly short, so you shouldn’t need to carry water for your dog unless you’re doing this on a warmer day (water is limited to a few puddles).
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