Time:
2½ hours 5 miles
Nunburnholme and Kilnwick Percy
After a walk along a quiet country lane at the bottom of the Wolds, this route follows a little-used right of way into the parkland of Kilnwick Percy Hall to reach its oddly truncated house, now home to a Buddhist community. Ascending onto the Wolds, the return route follows the more frequented Wolds Way, eventually descending to the secluded village of Nunburnholme. Please note, while visitors to the grounds are welcome, the route beyond the church at Kilnwick Percy Hall is not on a public right of way.
Is This Walk For Me?
This is a relatively short and easy walk. However, there are undulations with a long but gradual climb after Kilnwick Percy, and another soon after the Wolds Way is joined, which is steep but short. There are no stiles. Cattle may be grazing in fields on the Wolds Way section. Apart from the approach to and around Kilnwick Percy, the route is well waymarked.
Getting There
The recommended starting point is Nunburnholme church, where there is limited roadside parking. Nunburnholme is 17 miles from York via the A1079, turning left at Hayton then continuing through Burnby. It is also possible to park beyond the church in Nunburnholme village. An alternative starting point, if visiting the grounds and café, would be the car park of Kilnwick Percy Hall. There are no viable pubic transport options for this walk.
Refreshments
The only place en route is the World Peace Café at Kilnwick Percy Hall. This has a limited menu and, while scheduled to open daily between 10-4, it seems to close erratically for Buddhist festivals.
Directions
1/ With the church behind you, go left for a short distance to take the signed Wolds Way on the right, walking along the left edge of a field. At the corner, turn right, continuing with the boundary left to a gate. Turn left at the road.
2/ In about 150 metres, ignore a Wolds Way sign pointing right on a track uphill (this is your return route) and remain on the road. Stay on this for over a mile, passing a farm, soon after which there is a sharp right turn. Eventually, you’ll arrive at a main road with a farm to the left.
3/ Cross the road slightly to the left to find a wooden gate a few metres beyond the road signpost. Through this, walk alongside a fence on the right, towards buildings. Go through a gate (CCTV sign), following a grass-fenced path. Keep the buildings to the right, heading through a further gate on a grass path, with the church soon to the right. Join a tarmac path continuing to a signpost (Gift Shop, etc.), at which turn left. Keep the World Peace Café to the right, heading towards the ‘Main Building’, but opposite the toilet access, turn right, passing a white building to join a gravel drive. Follow this into trees (Walled Garden off to the right), walking uphill with various cottages on the right until you reach a tarmac road.
4/ Turn right on the road, continuing for about 600 metres until you reach a sharp left in front of some seats. Here, turn right on a tarmac track joining the signed Wolds Way, which is followed back to Nunburnholme.
5/ After heading into a dip, the tarmac track twists up to a farm. Here, keep the main buildings on the right to turn sharp right, as signed beyond a large barn. Continue with a fence to the left, going right at the field corner. Shortly after this, go left as waymarked through a metal gate, following the obvious path, which dips before arriving at a gate, giving access to a grass field. Here, go ahead, aiming slightly to the right of the left corner to reach a road.
6/ Cross straight over, going through a gap in the hedge (signpost) to follow a hedge on the right. Where this ends, turn right on a strip between cultivated fields for a short distance, to reach a tarmac track with a bungalow at the right. Turn left here, following the track into farm buildings. With a brick barn right and a modern barn left, go between these into trees, then keep right with solar panels to the left. Follow the track with a hedge left until you reach a gate. Through this, keep ahead on a faint path, tending left over the grass field. At a gate, ignore the footpath left, staying with the Wolds Way. Pass through a further gate, following the clear track downhill through woodland to reach a road. Turn left.
7/ Now, either retrace your route to the church, or continue along the road to visit Nunburnholme village. For the former, turn right off the road at the Wolds Way, following the outward route around the perimeter of the field as in Direction Point 1. For the latter, remain on the road to reach a junction with Town Street. After visiting the small village, walk back to this junction, keeping left on Church Lane to return to the start point.
What To See
Nunburnholme church is a Grade I listed building which contains an Anglo-Saxon cross shaft discovered during renovations. At a farm (second farm Direction Point 2), there is an unusual memorial slab to a record-breaking dairy cow. The parkland at Kilnwick Percy includes a lake, wooded areas and a walled garden, all normally open to visitors. The part-demolished house and neighbouring properties are part of the Madhyamaka Buddhist Centre. From the Wolds Way, there are long views south and west over the Vale of York.
Disclaimer
Walks are undertaken at your own risk. Due care must be taken in following the walk, particularly after poor weather. Whilst every care is taken in compiling the description, changes may have occurred since publication. Neither the walk author nor Your Local Link can accept any responsibility for errors or omissions.
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