🥾 GREAT AYTON WALK: HUTTON MOOR AND HANGING STONE CIRCULAR ROUTE
🌄 This Great Ayton walk is a varied 9¼ mile circular route that takes in woodland, farmland, open moorland and some of the most rewarding viewpoints on the northern edge of the North York Moors. Setting out from the village itself, the walk weaves through quiet lanes, forestry tracks and ancient woodland before climbing onto Hutton Moor and reaching the dramatic sandstone outcrop at Hanging Stone.
🗺️ The walk begins at the small car park and roadside parking area at the eastern end of High Street in Great Ayton, close to the village green. From here, the route heads south along Station Road, past Fletcher's Farm Coffee Shop and over the railway line, before climbing the flanks of Round Hill on a quiet bridleway. The path leads through Ayton Banks Wood, on into Mill Bank Wood, then up past Bankside Farm and through Pale End Plantation. From Percy Cross Rigg, a fine moorland bridleway leads north-west across Hutton Moor before joining the Cleveland Way and dropping down to Hanging Stone. The return passes Little Roseberry, Aireyholme Farm, Cliff Ridge Wood and Rye Hill before completing the loop back into the village.
📏 The full route covers 9¼ miles, or 14¾ kilometres, with around 1,459 feet of ascent, or 448 metres. Most walkers will complete the circuit in about four and a half hours. It's a circular walk in Northern England, best followed using Ordnance Survey Explorer map OL26, which clearly shows footpaths, rights of way, open access land and the surrounding terrain.
🏡 Great Ayton is a picturesque village set at the foot of the Cleveland Hills, on the edge of the North York Moors National Park. The River Leven flows gently through the village, linking its two centres at High Green and Low Green, while the distinctive 320-metre profile of Roseberry Topping rises to the north. The village has a long and fascinating history, recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 and forever linked with Captain James Cook, whose family moved here in 1736. Today, Great Ayton enjoys a thriving independent High Street and a calendar of cherished local events, all of which earned it a place on the Sunday Times' "Best Places to Live" list in 2022.
📸 Highlights along the way include the open views south towards the Cleveland Hills, and the striking outline of Roseberry Topping, whose jagged profile was shaped by a partial summit collapse in 1912. Further on, the moorland stretches of Percy Cross Rigg and Hutton Moor open up wide views north towards the coast, with Highcliff Nab, the turbines of Teesside Wind Farm and even the silvery line of the North Sea all visible. The dramatic sandstone outcrop at Hanging Stone is a real highlight, perched above Guisborough with sweeping views to the north. Closer to the village, the route passes Aireyholme Farm and the "In search of Cook's Cottage" interpretation board, before descending through Cliff Ridge Wood beneath magnificent old beech trees.
☕ If you enjoy big views and a good day's walking in open countryside, this Great Ayton walk has plenty to offer. Full directions, photographs, maps and route tools are all available on my website, where you can also find the GPX file and printable details to take with you on the day.
A scenic Great Ayton walk through woodland and open moorland, passing Hanging Stone, Little Roseberry and the historic Aireyholme Farm.