The Upper Ryedale churches have created their own walking route called the St Aelred's Pilgrim Trail. It takes in a number of historic churches and abbey ruins in the North York Moors.
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00:00 I'm George Guyde, I'm PCC Secretary of Upper Rydale and we're in the benefits of Helmsley
00:06 and Upper Rydale outside Revo Church awaiting walking down to the Abbey.
00:12 Last year we launched the Upper Rydale Trail as part of the Yorkshire Historic Churches
00:18 Ride and Stride event in September and then we were having a discussion with our Helmsley
00:24 colleagues about the Hamlet Churches and Helmsley Church and thinking that wouldn't it be a
00:29 great idea to have a trail that linked all of the churches in our benefits.
00:34 We discussed that with the Reverend Mel and a number of colleagues and we set up a planning
00:38 group to make that happen.
00:40 So we've now established a 41 mile trail around all the churches in the benefits and it is
00:47 a smashing walk through the North Yorkshire Moors as well as a horse ride if you want
00:52 it or a cycle ride.
00:54 It is open to everyone, there are parts of it that are challenging.
00:57 The walk begins and ends in Helmsley and goes from Helmsley to East Moors and then across
01:05 East Moors onto Billsdale West and then down Billsdale and that part is steep and then
01:11 out of Billsdale up Malkin Bower across to Hornby and that's tough and then Hornby through
01:17 K-Dale and past Mutton Grange to Old Byland and that's another tough part.
01:23 But after that it moves onto Scorton then Colt Kirby then from Colt Kirby down to Revo
01:30 and this church here and then Revo Abbey and they're pretty good.
01:35 Each one has a section that could just be walked in its own right by people of all capabilities
01:41 really and we're establishing a trail for horse riders and also for cyclists.
01:48 So we're hoping to make it a national thing.
01:51 We've got a generous grant from the North Yorkshire Moors Association to publish a guidebook
01:57 and we've also got a good grant from the North Yorkshire Council to enable us to put up signposts
02:03 around the path.
02:05 So we actually are in a good position.
02:06 We hope to have it ready by late spring for people to start doing it and to join us in
02:12 September in the YHCT Riders' Ride.
02:16 I'm Reverend Melanie Burnside and I'm priest in charge of Helmsley and Upper Rydale and
02:22 I also look after the Methodist churches of Helmsley and Revo and these beautiful communities
02:30 that are on the North York Moors and the lovely market town of Helmsley.
02:33 It's wonderful.
02:34 They'd had this wonderful idea to set up a pilgrim trail and I've just helped them to
02:40 connect with people locally, with the Abbey and with the North York Moors folks, you know,
02:49 to help it all come together.
02:50 It's kind of snowballed really.
02:52 Trying to help to raise money and to raise awareness and to help people to enjoy these
03:00 amazing churches that are just sat there out on the moors for anyone to pop into, say a
03:06 prayer, have a little bit of peace and quiet and to enjoy, you know, get out there and
03:12 see them.
03:13 It's finding new and inventive ways to help people to have a spiritual hunger, to reflect
03:24 and to connect with God, with nature, to dig inside themselves and think about, you know,
03:33 maybe what's missing in their life and how we can help them fill that up.
03:40 Sadly I haven't done all 41 miles yet.
03:42 I've done some chunks of it but no, Joyce and Mal are the pathfinders.
03:46 They're the ones that have walked it and walked it again and been unhappy with the route and
03:51 done another little section of it and they really are wonderful pilgrims.
03:57 Pilgrims for God doing amazing things out there in the countryside.