If you would like an expert walking guide to accompany you on this walk Boot Routes can help…
Harewood House is a country house located in a small village called Harewood just North of Leeds on the A61 Harrogate Road. It is a huge estate of about 1,000 acres and luckily for us has a circular public footpath around the grounds. The estate has its own deer farm, mansion, and estate buildings, but you don’t have to pay the £15 per person entry fee for this walk.
This 5 mile circular walk starts at the Muddy Boots Cafe which is located on Church Lane Harewood, Leeds LS17 9LJ, and is marked up as a Police Station on the OS maps. There is parking for about 20 cars in the car park, and a parking honesty box (£2.50 for the day). As soon as you exit the car you will hear and see the Red Kites flying overhead, and there are a couple of wooden tables outside the cafe which are often full of wildlife photographers like World War Two search light operators training their cameras at the acrobatic birds of prey in the skies above. These majestic birds were released on the Harewood estate in 1999 as part of a UK conservation initiative.
From the car park follow the road West on Church Lane through the gate and into the woods. Walk quietly and you may be lucky enough to see Fallow Deer in the woods to your right; on a recent visit here I saw a young buck with about half a dozen hinds only a few feet away from me. This breed of deer were introduced by the Normans in the 11th century, and are now widespread and the most common deer in England.
Follow the road to the end of the woods, and through the gate/cattle grid where depending on the time of year you may see our largest land mammal the Red Deer. On a visit here during the rutting season, my route forward was blocked by a large stag, stood roaring in the middle of the road, and in the morning mist he looked magnificent. He was well aware I was there, and he had deliberately put himself between me and his group of hinds. There was no way that I was going to argue with a quarter of a tonne of muscle and testosterone, so I sensibly retreated back the way I came.
Out of the rutting season though you can follow the road down the hill and turn left at the crossroads. In the field to your right you should see hundreds of Red Deer, and Buzzards making the most of thermals above you, which should make for a good photo opportunity in the right conditions.
Follow the road South, and eventually you will enter the Harewood estate, continue past the buildings, dropping down to the river, over the bridge and straight across. Follow this track past the large walled gardens, and eventually you will come to Carr House Cottage where you start climbing up through the woods. About 100 metres into the woods look for the path/track to your left and take this, if you miss this path there is another path on the left a short distance further on, but if you miss both of these paths you will end up going miles out of your way.
You are now on the Leeds Country Way and the next mile or so is a lovely woodland walk where you should see various birds such as Nuthatch, Treecreeper and Blue Tit. Cross over the bridge, up through the gate and out into fields where you simply follow the one solitary track which is now heading East back towards the A61. Here views of the majestic Harewood House will open up to the North, and once you reach the stunning modernised Gate House take the permissive track to your left which runs parallel with the A61.
Follow this last section of the walk North which can be a bit muddy towards the end, but eventually you will pop out through a wooden gate onto the A61 where it is simply a short walk back to the car park. The cafe is well worth a visit, they do a stunning English breakfast, some delicious cakes, and you can even watch the Red Kites in the sky if you’re lucky enough to get a window seat.
This walk is just short of 5 miles, it should take you between 2 - 3 hours, there are some gentle hills to negotiate which are mostly on tarmac roads or farm tracks, and I have seen people on bikes and families with push chairs on this walk.
This route description is provided by Boot Routes: we provide guided walks anywhere in the UK and navigation courses in West Yorkshire and the Peak District.
