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Welly wanders to Boxing Day epics - take a digital Twixmas walk in North Yorkshire

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Fancy a walk this Twixmas but not sure where to go? Visit Ryedale has launched a collection of walks, with digital walking guide business iFootpath, ranging from short discovery trails to longer countryside rambles. There are 20 walks in total, so depending on mood, how much Christmas pudding has been consumed and who’s walking, there is something to suit all ages and abilities.

Each walk begins in one of Ryedale’s five market towns – Helmsley, Kirkbymoorside, Pickering, Malton and Norton-on-Derwent. The routes are described, photographed and mapped via GPS meaning it is easier than ever to avoid wrong turns. Walkers can download and print the PDF guide for free or download the iFootpath App, which gives a smarter walking experience with live GPS-powered maps that show your progress as you walk. The App is for Apple and Android devices and costs a one-off price of £1.49, giving access to hundreds of walking guides in the UK.

Families with young children and grandparents in tow, may prefer one of the easy access walks that start in Helmsley (Britain’s Best Market Town 2015) and Malton (Yorkshire’s Food Capital). As well as being shorter, they have things to do and tend to avoid the rivers and muddy woodland paths, so are as ‘all-weather’ as possible. Parking is quick and easy and each town has an excellent range of facilities: pubs, tea-rooms, and public toilets (check festive opening times). These two walks are particularly family friendly:

For a more rural walk, Howardian Hills has also launched a series of rambles. At this time of year the villages of Welburn and Hovingham make good starting points because they each have a pub (check festive opening times) and the trails have scenery in spades with history and wildlife thrown in at every turn. In the following leaflets, there are three walk choices from the same starting point depending on how far you want to go, with very easy signposting on each route: (http://www.howardianhills.org.uk/wpboth content/uploads/2015/09/Walks_from_Hovingham.pdf or http://www.howardianhills.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/Walks_from_Welburn.pdf) 

Festive walks around the Castle Howard estate are always a family favourite and, although the house and gardens of Castle Howard are closed on Boxing Day, the car park will be open to provide free parking. The coffee shop will be serving hot drinks and treats for those in need of refreshment at the start or end of a walk, with toilet facilities also available free. The most popular walk is a five-mile circular route that starts and ends at the courtyard car park, incorporating scenic views of the house and many of its key landmarks, including the Great Lake, Temple of the Four Winds and the Mausoleum. For details of the Howardian Hills walk, please visit www.northyorkmoors.org.uk or for details on walks within the gardens of Castle Howard itself please visit www.castlehoward.co.uk

For more information about these walks and many others, including maps and full turn-by-turn directions, go to www.VisitRyedale.co.uk and/or www.howardianhills.org.uk

ENDS

For more media information please contact:

Nicola Bexon, Pyper York PR:

01904 500698 or nicola@pyperyork.co.uk

Samantha Orange, Pyper York PR:

01904 500698, or sam@pyperyork.co.uk

Notes to the Editor

Visit Ryedale is supported by Ryedale District Council and over 700 tourism businesses and works in partnership with Visit York, Visit Hull & East Yorkshire, Welcome to Yorkshire and Visit England.

Visit Ryedale's aim is to market Ryedale and its market towns as a must-see destination to the leisure visitor, and ensure investment to develop the quality of tourism in Ryedale.  Visit Ryedale is responsible for leisure marketing, visitor services (running the district's Visitor Information Points) and ensuring a quality visitor experience.

Key fact tourism facts: 5 million visitors annually, £209 million total visitor spend, supporting 7,000 jobs.

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