Length: 7.26 miles. Height change: 998.81ft. Time: 3.5hrs.
A moderate half-day walk: starts with a nice climb to get your heart beating and oxygen in your lungs. This walk has great views from Fremington Edge and takes in some ancient tracks and steps well-worn by nuns.
Leave Reeth by the main road heading towards Richmond. Cross the bridge and then turn into a field by the garage. Take the path towards High Fremington. Once in High Fremington follow the road and take the steep track on your left which eventually joins another small road. Turn left and follow this up the hill. Keep following this track right on to the flat top of Fremington Edge – do not be tempted by paths to the right, since it is easy to get lost or end up on very steep and slippery slopes – I have experience!
During the climb up you get great views over to Reeth and up Swaledale. Once on the top, turn right and follow the path with the wall to you right. It very gradually depends. On a great weather day, you should be able to see right across the Vale of Mowbray and onto the North Yorkshire Moors.
Keep on the path and the decent will gradually get steeper, but never steep. Eventually you will reach a T-junction with a road going straight ahead. Take this road – it should be signposted to Marrick, but sometimes the post “blows over”. Follow this undulating road to Marrick where you turn right onto a cart track and then right again. This track eventually turns into a path and then into some woods with descending steps. These are known as the “Nuns’ Steps” and are a historic paved pathway used by Benedictine nuns from at least 1160 to 1539 connecting Marrick Priory to Marrick and possibly to lead-mining interests. It is a popular and well-known part of the Coast to Coast walk.
At Marrick Priory take the road/track heading up the dale towards Reeth. Follow this until the road is adjacent to the river. At this point there should be a sign posted footpath to your left which follows the river. Take this path which follows the river all the way back to Grinton. Cross the road by the bridge and take the footpath back through the fields to the main road, which you can then follow back into Reeth.
Highly recommend you stop off at the Dales Bike Centre cafe for cake. To get there, at Grinton, cross the road, but do not take the path through the fields, instead turn right and follow the main road to the bike centre – you can’t miss it.