This is part one of a series of three East Yorkshire railway walking posts. This first post focuses on the area west of Hull, with part two primarily looking at these types of walks in the Market Weighton, Wharram Percy and Stamford Bridge vicinity, with part three looking at Hull and the east coast region.
I'm by no means a railway enthusiast, however I am a fan of walking railway trails and footpaths that utilise these old disused railways. Although many people are saddened by the demise of the railways in this country this offers some fantastic walks through the countryside and hopefully this series of blog posts will highlight the ones available in East Yorkshire.
A number of the walking routes detailed on this blog incorporate some of these old railways, which I'll reference, however I have found a superb book called 'Yorkshire Railway Rambles' dedicated to this subject and will therefore summarise some of my favourites.
Please note that as I'm no expert on the history of the railways I can not guarantee any historical information I've detailed will be accurate, I can confirm however the walks, routes and walking maps are and therefore referring to 'Yorkshire Railway Rambles' is advisable if additional information on historical matters is required
Yorkshire Railway Rambles (Volume 1: North and East)
A guide to walking and cycling through the railway history of North and East Yorkshire
PART TWO OF THE RAILWAY WALKS NOW AVAILIBLE - HERE
Bubwith Rail Trail
The Bubwith Rail Trail runs from GR SE8399 4055 (just outside of Harswell) to the River Derwent, south of Bubwith at GR SE7086 3557, allowing for a 9 mile flat linear route, providing an excellent walk for all walking abilities.
The Bubwith Trail doesn't offer the spectacular views as other parts of the county, however is an unbroken, relaxing walk through some wonderful countryside offering a unique chance to see wildlife and nature in a quite and tranquil environment, incorporating the fantastic Dingle Dell nature reserve.
I have detailed a superb 25 mile walk on this blog, heading out from Harswell, utilising part of this trail - (Walk No. B4) Harswell Circular, however as there are many public footpaths in the vicinity it would be easy enough to design a shorter walk by studying the OS map for the area (291 Goole & Gilberdyke).
I will be adding some of my own later this year so please check out The Walking Cave Man East Yorkshire interactive walks map in the near future.
The Hudson Way
The Hudson Way is a linear trail from Beverley to Market Weighton, formally part of the Hull, Beverley, Market Weight and York railway line.
As with the Bubwith Trail the Hudson Way can be used to make up many circular walks depending upon the distance required, however the whole route is 10 miles with an average walking time of about 3 to 4 hours.
The Hudson Way is a flat walk, accessible to cycles for the whole length, providing some interesting features, such as the old renovated stations of Kiplingcoates and Cherry Burton.
For a longer circular walk please note my blog post "The Walking Cave Man Way", which is a 25 mile circular route taking in the East Yorkshire villages of Bishop Burton and Walkington, however National Trails has designed a shorter walk offering a fantastic route detailed below (select the map to download):
Drewton, South Cave
This part of the Yorkshire Wolds is one of my favourites and this route offers a fantastic short walk, located near South Cave, that passes Comber Dale, and heads through Low Hunsley Plantation and Drewton Dale.
N.B for walkers interested in Geocaching, The Walking Cave Man has seven caches located on this route - details of these can be found on the Walking Cave Man Geocaching blog.
Although not actually a rail trail it does follow part of a dismantled railway, walking over and under disused tunnels. The route also follows the Yorkshire Wolds Way for a short stretch, passing through the densely, but pleasant, wooded plantation of Low Hunsley.
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| Low Hunsley Plantation |
Parking is available at various locations, however would suggest the parking area close to High Hunsley, as detailed on the map above.
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| Drewton Dale |
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| Drewton Dale |
For further walks taking in this area please check out my walks on the 'North Cave, South Cave & Brantingham' page.
Eastrington
Although I have not walked the short rail trail in Eastrington, I have walked the wider area and passed by the reserve a number of times and therefore for a longer walk it may be best to incorporate this small trail into a larger one.
Below I have detailed a 15 mile walk, taking the rail trail into account, making this into a fantastic walk of the Howden area - For full details of this walk please see my Walk No. B1 Eastrington Circular route and also the 17 mile LDWA Howdenshire Way. Both of these walks set off from the free car park at the nature reserve.
Please note that both routes include public footpaths crossing unmanned railway crossings and therefore extreme caution is required when using these, therefore these walks may be unsuitable for younger walkers/walkers with a disability, however perfectly safe if used sensibly.
Location of Rail Trails in East Yorkshire (to be updated in part two and three of the series)
View East Yorkshire Railway Trails in a larger
I hope that the first part of this series of blogs has illustrated some of the trails available and hopefully has been interesting enough for some of the routes to be tried.
Please look out for parts 2 & 3 of the series (part two should be out in the next couple of weeks), however by following me on Twitter, 'like' me on my Facebook page or Google + you will receive automatic updates or notification of blog updates.
PART TWO OF THE RAILWAY WALKS NOW AVAILIBLE - HERE
