This is a pleasant 4½-mile walk through 2 wooded valleys and some higher altitude agricultural land, passing through the villages of Cold Kirby and Scawton.  The gradients are mainly moderate and there is an alternative to a short narrow and steep downhill path. 

The starting point between Rievaulx and Scawton (OS Explorer map OL26, North York Moors Western Area, ref 563845) is a wide entrance to a gateway where there is room for 5 or 6 cars at the side without blocking the way to the gate.

1.    Leave the car parking area (map reference 563845), setting off away from the road through the gate following the Cleveland Way sign.  Walk on a solid track, with woods to the left and a stream and lakes to the right, to a wooden “Cleveland Way” sign. [800m]

2.    (556846)  Follow the sign away from the track to the right across the stream (stepping blocks) and through a gate.  Ignore bridleway waymarks to the right and turn slightly to the left and join another solid track along the side of the valley with a grass field to the right, to a junction of tracks. [400m]

3.    (552847)  Turn right (NOT Cleveland Way) and follow a solid track through a valley to another junction of valleys. [1300m]

4.    (540851)  Follow a solid track to the right, uphill through Tanker Dale, keeping right following the main track to within 50m of a gateway onto a road. [600m]

5.    (535852)  Turn left following a waymark up the bank to a stile.  Over the stile, cross a field diagonally to the far right corner. [300m] 

6.    (534849)  Over a stile and continue through a small valley and then to a stile on the right.  Over that stile and diagonally across a field, initially towards a pair of large trees and continue to a 3-step stile. [total 250m]. 

7.    (533846)  Climb over the 3-step stile, then over a ladder stile into a lane and turn right along the lane into Cold Kirby village and turn left on a footpath (short cut to village road that joins further along on the left). [200m]

8.    (533845)  Follow the road (Inn Way, footpath to Scawton) past the church where it becomes a track and follow this solid track until it turns left; continue straight on along a track (initially muddy) that crosses fields. Where the solid track ends at the start of a hedgerow, keep to the right of the hedge following the footpath sign to the edge of a wood. [800m]

9.    (537838)  Just after the path enters the wood turn left on a narrow path steeply downhill to the bottom of the valley (alternatively continue on the wider path and double back on a solid track).  Turn left onto the solid track and almost immediately right onto a path uphill through a wood to a stile. [300m]

10.  (540837)  Climb over the stile and continue across fields to the left of the field boundaries, over several stiles to a field corner by a wood. [600m]

11.  (545834)  Turn right over a stile then alongside the wood to its end and sharp left back along the other side to a stile. [150m]

12.  (546834)  Over the stile and diagonally across a field heading to the left of farm buildings, then through a gate and continue to a gate by the far corner of a barn. [total 200m]

13.  (548835)  Through the gate and turn right to a gate into a short path between walls to emerge onto the road through Scawton village.  Turn right and continue to The Hare Inn. [200m]

14.  (549834)  Turn left (to the left of the Inn) and follow the path behind village gardens to the point where a farm track crosses it, then a few paces further, turn right through a gate. [total 600m]

15.  (549835)  Cross a rough field and between hawthorn bushes (following waymarks) and eventually descend into a wooded valley and up the other side to a waymarked gate.  Go through the gate and continue with a belt of deciduous conifers to the left, to reach a gate onto a tarmac farm drive. [700m]

16.  (556837)  Turn left onto the tarmac drive and follow it down into the valley and continue to a road junction. [400m]

17.  (556842)  Turn right onto the road and continue to the car park. [750m]