Bloworth Crossing, Coast to Coast
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Approach to Bloworth Crossing on the Coast to Coast path
Bloworth Crossing, Urra Moor, Coast to Coast
Bloworth Crossing marks the location where the Coast to Coast path coming from the west via Round Hill and Urra Moor, intersects two trails. The first is where the Coast to Coast path meets the disused railway that leads north to Battersby Junction and east to Rosedale. A second trail, an ancient highway, is then intersected which runs north to Kildale and south to the Vale of Pickering.
So there are two trails running parallel heading north, i.e. the disused railway (the more western trail). and the ancient highway (the more eastern trail). The old railway used to run to Ingleby Incline at the foot of Battersby Plantation and was then hauled by a system of ropes to the top of the moorland, to a location known as Incline Top, and would then run as a normal train. The mineral wagons were pulled up with the aid of gravity due to ropes being attached to heavily laden wagons; their descent would pull the empty wagons uphill.
The ancient highway is currently followed north from Bloworth Crossing by the Cleveland Way, which uses the same route from Urra Moor to Bloworth that the Coast to Coast path uses.
The disused railway, at Bloworth, follows the Coast to Coast path to the Lion Inn. The ancient highway, from Bloworth, heads south along Rudland Rigg, also known as Westside Road (it is a track, however, not a road). This track, throughout its length has divers ancient barrows, standing stones, crosses and tumuli. Most of these are positioned on the ridge top and can be seen from miles around.
The old railway was used to convey minerals from the mines in and around Rosedale to the industrial nucleus of Middlesbrough and Teeside.
Bloworth Crossing is a half-mile south east of Greenhow Moor and a half-mile north of Bloworth Wood. Urra Moor is to its west, and Farndale to its east.
Bloworth
Bloworth Crossing is a north south ancient pathway leading from Kildale to the Vale of Pickering. The pathway is intersected by the Coast to Coast path and also by the Rosedale railway.
Railway Levee
The need for a levee is obvious, looking at the surrounding sloughy moorland. This is the Coast to Coast path coming from Rosedale, where it arrives at Bloworth Crossing.
Bloworth Railway Levee
Railway levees are quite common around the Yorkshire Moors, made necessary because of the number of swampy waterlogged ground they have to cross. This is particularly evident on the disused Battersby to Rosedale railway, near to Farndale Moor at Bloworth.
Coast to Coast Bloworth
From Bloworth Crossing, upon looking north west along the Coast to Coast path, the track is dead straight. This is part of the dismantled railway, from which the Coast to Coast path turns off after 200 yards, leaving the disused railway path to make its way to Incline top, to begin its descent to Ingleby Incline at the foot of Battersby Plantation.
Bloworth Signage
Looking from the actual Crossing the signage at the junction clearly shows the route of the Coast to Coast path, in both directions. The tops of the signage and other posts, which are in ample supply at the Crossing, are visible as thin strips on the ridge horizon when looked at from the ford at the head of Bransdale.
Bloworth Cockayne Head
At Cockayne Head there is an alternative path to the dismantled railway, effectively a short-cut. the path leads off diagonally to the north east (left in the image). However, the Coast to Coast path continues ahead and is the most direct route to Bloworth Crossing.
Coast to Coast Trail Guide
Hiking the Coast to Coast
"Hiking the Coast to Coast" is a digitally enhanced eBook available from Apple Books for all people who have either a Mac, an iPhone or an iPad, and is designed to accompany you on your walk of the Coast to Coast path. The trail guide contains Ordnance Survey maps and other advanced mapping features, step by step directions, hundreds of colour photographs, details of the route, its conditions in different weather and research snippets relating to places of interest along the way.
