Yorkshire’s Rural Riches
Gillian Thornton explores Herriot country and the national parkland of North Yorkshire
Standing on top of Sutton Bank in North Yorkshire, I’m soaking up a countryside view made famous by one of England’s best-loved writers.
Before me, the Vale of York stretches in a patchwork of fields to the horizon, a view once described as the finest in England by veterinary surgeon Alf White, better known to his millions of international readers as author James Herriot.
Look up at Sutton Bank from the flat land below and you’re treated to yet another iconic view. Carved into the steep limestone escarpment of the Hambleton Hills, the vast White Horse of Kilburn is Britain’s most northerly turf-cut figure, visible for miles around. The brainchild of Victorian schoolmaster Thomas Taylor, the White Horse today marks the south-western boundary of the North York Moors National Park.
A mix of heather moors and pastoral dales dotted with market towns and heritage sites, the Park covers more than 550 square miles, stretching eastwards from Sutton Bank to the holiday resorts of Scarborough and Whitby on the North Sea coast.
Park at the Sutton Bank National Park Centre for a gentle three-mile circular trail past the Yorkshire Gliding Club to the White Horse. Or walk down to Lake Gormire, the only natural lake in the National Park. You can also hire bikes to explore a range of routes graded for families as well as experienced mountain bikers.
Just five miles from Sutton Bank, the bustling market town of Thirsk makes a great base for exploring, nestled between the North York Moors and the Yorkshire Dales. A wealth of heritage sites, walking routes and visitor attractions cluster within an hour’s drive in every direction. One of Britain’s most historic cities, York is 45 minutes by car and as little as 18 minutes by train.
Alf White wrote his first book as James Herriot from
his veterinary practice on the marketplace in Thirsk, now The World of James Herriot visitor attraction. Time your visit right, and you can enjoy a fun day at the races in Thirsk or nearby Ripon.
Don’t miss Ripon Cathedral. The father of author Lewis Carroll was a canon here and Lewis was inspired to create some of the scenes in Alice in Wonderland by carvings on the choir stalls, including the unforgettable White Rabbit!