Spofforth Pinnacles Walk

I'm attempting this week to be a bit less extreme, and also realizing that there is a lot of my local area that I haven't yet explored.  This time I went out with Rob and a couple of friends to do a local walk, figuring that I would be provided with plenty of photos and even have breath left over to chat while walking instead of running.  The weather didn't really work out, though, as it was rather windy, overcast, and damp.  I don't think any of us would have braved the weather if we all hadn't agreed in advance to meet up!

We parked in the village of Spofforth and started our walk north along the River Crimple.  The first couple of miles were quite muddy, although we were sheltered from the worst of the weather by our low position in the valley floor. From the river, we headed up to Brown Hill wood and then on to Birkham wood via the old highway-turned-bridleway.  It was nice walking except for the four busy road crossings which kept us waiting for a while.

The path back via Plompton Hall led us by pigs, ponies, minature goats and a bunch of chickens, which was mildly entertaining as the sky kept getting darker and wetter.  Finally we were into the Spofforth Pinnacles, which are oddly-shaped boulders strewn about a pasture resembling a giant's game of shuffleboard.

The pinnacles were supposed to be the highlight of the walk, but with the wind blowing cold rain into our faces we were all ready to get back to the car.  I must confess that we walked the road back the last mile or so to avoid getting the sticky mud along the river reunited with our boots.  Definitely a place to revisit with a picnic on a nice summer day. 

Thanks to Jim and Gill for suggesting this walk on their Blog.