Alone Beneath The Sky: Tadcaster to York 11/06/16

14.1 miles, via The Old Street, Street Houses, Bilbrough Top, Copmanthorpe, Bishopthorpe,
Middlethorpe Ings & The City Walls.

Nearly miss today's excursion because I was enjoying the sleep of the dead, so it's all a bit of a dash to get myself out of the house and onto the trail, not arriving at my start point until 10.55am, hopping off the Coastliner by St Mary's church having found the most convenient bus stop and avoiding an extra half mile of walking through Tadcaster. So first operation is to get over the Wharfe, not the straightforward task it used to be now that the bridge is out of use, but a footbridge has been constructed a short distance down stream so that the locals can now catch a bus to York or use the local Sainsbury's without needing a long odyssey across half the county. Good to see the bridge in place as the town really does have the feel of being brutally severed from half its populace, and our trail on the Ebor Way, the least loved of all of Yorkshire's paths (so neglected that even I am not interested in doing its complete length) has us heading up Commercial Street through the older part of East Tadcaster and on through to York Road, showing up this part as the more ordinarily residential half of the town, not that some of the breweries' tied houses don't have attractive faces. Press on to the countryside again, to the Toll Bar house and the tangle of roads as the A659 and the A64 merge, and the shortest route to York would be via the latter, but a trail by the dual carriageway would be no fun so the way leads us to Catterton Lane and a green and leafy road walk to pick up the trail along The Old Street, the former Roman road between Calcaria and Eboracum, and you might think it would be easy to find, but it's well hidden away from the field boundaries and deep into a strip of woodland. It's not fun going at all, dense and uncut vegetation stands waist deep and after all the inclement weather of the preceding few days means that I am soon soaked to the skin and walking in waterlogged boots before the first field is cleared, and despite clearer footing beyond, my spirits have sunken horribly, and if there hadn't been a clear dry track to the cluster of farm at Street Houses I might have considered bailing on arrival by the A64.

So stop by the filling station next to the Travelodge (and Little Chef!) to remove my boots and wring out my socks so that I might not squelch my way along the dual carriageway, uncertain where the crossing might be made, as my map is 16 years old, but pressing on to the Bilbrough Top services provides an access bridge to the other side, and the poor signage of the Ebor Way at least makes an effort to give you some direction as The Old Street. Back to the field boundaries, and straight into the long grass and all my attempts to get myself dried count for naught as I'm soon soaked again and am sloshing along in waterlogged boots and trying to prevent water from getting on my map or camera, I didn't think it was possible to get this wet without it raining or you paddling through a river. Spirits drop hard, and again I need to focus on my destination, as I know that will be interesting, to stop me considering bailing again, and once the road surface is met, I can stop for another drying session, wringing out the socks and literally squeezing the water from my boots, realizing that I haven't said much about the landscape I'm in presently, and the sad truth is that on a glum day like today, the Ainsty of York is not the most engaging of Landscapes. Depart the Roman Road, and options for a swift return to Leeds on arrival in Copmanthorpe, one of York's satellite villages that has seen enormous suburban growth, so if 1980s housing is your thing, this is the place for you, passing along Manor Heath and School Lane to the old village centre, and then taking Low Green and the footpath around the Primary school to head out of the other side. One last dose of suburbia around Farmer's Way before passing over the Bishopthorpe Crossing on the main railway into York, with no trains in evidence on any of the four tracks, and neatly cut field boundaries await on the track eastwards, with the greater risks being posed by mud churned up by the heavy machinery that has been engaged in gas main repairs, or by falling into the holes they've dug. Arrival on Copmanthorpe Lane (which never actually got there!) has spirits improve, with drying feet and secure knowledge that the oncoming paths will be easier, but first sights of Bishopthorpe aren't too special, with a splash of suburbia sitting at the roadside, with no visible sign of the main line railway that once ran through here only 35 years, and only the Trans Pennine Trail signage suggesting its presence.

Arrival by the Methodist Church and the old village school at the end of Main Street has the scenery improve markedly, as a wide and proud lane carries us eastwards, the desirable houses set well back from the road on the south side and offering enough pubs to have a pretty decent session, which would surely tempt me on a nicer day that this one, and it's also busy, much more so that you'd expect in a glum June day like this. Of course, I've not recognised that this is HMQ's official 90th birthday, and that the crowds are gathering for the garden party at the Archbishop of York's palace, so I can pass by, admiring the perimeter buildings and the gatehouse before not joining the folks going in, pushing on past St Andrews church in search of the path down to the riverside, as I'll do my patriotism in my own fashion thank you very much. Between Warren Pond and the York Crematorium, we find the path to the banks of the Ouse, initially wooded but soon settling onto the flood embankment and taking us below the A64 bridge and the York Bypass, before carrying on along the edge of Middleton Ings, and I need to take a break, as I'm in need of food and have no real idea of where we are in the day, taking as late a lunch as is possible as I sit opposite Fulford Hall and watch the boating going by on the river. Swing north with the Fulford moorings at the riverside, and forward attention towards York Racecourse and the former Terry's chocolate factory that is surely York's major industrial landmark, happy that the cows in the Ings fields are kept at a safe distance before the trail makes its entrance into the city, meeting the Trans Pennine Trail and passing the Millennium Bridge, where a large group of canoeing enthusiasts are having an away day. Push on by the side of Rowntree park, showing up more of the chocolate history of the city and the days when industrialists also had a social conscience, continuing on past the confluence of the Foss and past the upscale flats along Terry Avenue, hopefully high enough up to avoid the Ouse floods, and soon enough, we're up Bishopgate Street and on to Skeldergate bridge, where a left turn would take us homewards, but I'm feeling inspired to complete my walk as planned despite the pervasive dampness still on me, crossing the river and passing the Castle to make a circuit of the city walls.

First point of contact on the Medieval walls, the most extensive in the country, across the Foss and Tower Street is the Fishergate Postern, with steps leading up to the battlemented walkway, still unenclosed at this corner, rising around an estate of council houses before briefly dropping at Fishergate Bar before ascending again to offer views of the Barbican arts centre riding the high embankment all the way to Walmgate Bar. It's worth passing outside this gatehouse to examine the barbican, the only one still attached to these former toll houses and defensive towers before returning to the wall top to wander against the tide of tourists, above older blocks of flats on the route to the brick built Red Tower, where the swamps of the Foss precluded any need for a wall at this eastern edge. The Foss is canalised these days so a brief river walk takes us past the site of the railway yards by Foss Islands Road before re-joining the wall at Layerthorpe bridge. The embankment rises high above Jewbury, thankfully enclosed by fence now, and shows up older building like the Merchant Taylor's hall and St Cuthbert's church among a spread of sympathetic late 20th century buildings. Return to road level at Monk Bar, the proudest and hardest to photograph of all the York Bars, eschewing the Richard III experience and taking the steps up to the stretch of wall up to the northern corner of the old city, the section which offers the best views of the Minster and the evidence of garden parties in the grounds of the Treasurer's House and the Gray's Court hotel, almost enough to make me wish I were patriotic. Tree cover obscures views on the south western tack, also providing damp underfoot conditions before passing through the interior of Bootham Bar and dropping down to street level opposite the art gallery. We'll not take the main wall line to the Ouse, instead taking in the precinct wall that enclosed St Mary's abbey, heading along Bootham and Marygate to arrive at the riverside just down from Scarborough bridge, and the Museum Gardens wall remnants, and the Roman Multiangular Tower, will have to come another day as we cross the river to pace the riverside walkway up to the Peacock Tower by Lendal bridge before ascending the wall once again to head on the short distance to the Station Road steps. I forget to look back to get the classic view into York from here, and the remaining quarter of the walls can wait for another day as this one has gone on far too long, and the path to the station is very short from here, so wind up the day at 5.10pm, hopeful that drying out properly will be in my immediate future.

5,000 Miles Cumulative Total: 2269.3 miles
2016 Total: 254.9 miles
Up Country Total: 2072.6 miles
Solo Total: 2038.4 miles

Tadcaster Footbridge. supposedly temporary, but I feel it could be around for
a while, judging by the amount of remdial work needed on the old bridge.

Tadcaster Toll Bar, the old Roman Road replaced by the Turnpike,
a bit more poetic than saying the A659 meets the A64.

The Old Street, ancient Roman Road in need of a strimmer,
and this was far from the worst and wettest part too.

Bilbrough Top services, complete with bridge to get over the A64.

Back on the Old Street and the amount of damp vegetation is singularly
dispiriting. Walking in waterlogged boots just isn't that much fun.

The Royal Oak, Copmanthorpe. A small and appealing
village centre surrounded by a sea of suburbia.

Field Walking to Bishopthorpe and finally free from the long wet grass and horrifying
overgrowth, I never thought I'd be so happy to have mud as my only problem!

Bishopthorpe Main Street, the Archbishop's palace might be the central feature
but the village's main drag is a impressive as any you'll find in the county.

Fulford Hall and leisure boating on the Ouse.

York Millennium Bridge, a welcome addition to the many paths that reside along
the riverside, ensuring you might never fail to find a fresh path in these parts.