The heather had come into flower since we were last here and as we skirted the western moorland rim of the Hole of Horcum there was a scent of honey in the air.
The ground was dry here and we walked on a wide track for some time before stopping just before Levisham for lunch. Although rain threatened a couple of times and the sky was dark we had no more than a few large drops of rain after lunch. It was very warm though and quite humid as we passed through Levisham which is a very pretty village with wide grass verges and lovely stone cottages.
The path passed through the village and then entered a wood where there was a lot of mud to be negotiated before we emerged on to a better track that went up hill before we came to a great view of the Newton Dale Gorge which was chosen by George Stephenson for the course of his Pickering to Whitby railway line opened in 1836 and closed by Beeching in 1964. He's got a lot to answer for!
The line between Grosmont and Pickering is now run by an independent trust, the North Yorkshire Moors Railway, and is one of the country's best loved and scenic steam railways. We weren't lucky enough to see a steam train but we certainly heard one as we made our way through the trees.
It was quite a long walk today so we didn't have much time to stop. We snatched a quick five minutes for a drink here before walking the last six miles into Cropton arriving just in time for a drink in the pub before leaving for home.
I think someone had been practising wood carving here!
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