Middleton To Mickleton

The first part of this walk is on the Teesdale Way and after crossing to Mickleton the way back is on the Tees Railway Walk. Leave Middleton on the main road in an easterly direction going past the Coop on the left, with the village green on the right. About 100 yds past the Coop turn right into Masterman Place. Walk through the archway and down the hill, with beautiful views of the moor and later of Kirk Carrion.Bear right into New Town and down to the river, where you turn left onto the river footpath.Continue along the footpath next to the river, through a gate into an open field with views to the left of Monks Moor and Eggleston Moor ahead. Continue past the caravan and camp site on your left, through another gate and into another field, keeping to the river path, past a bench at the top of a decent with a good view across the Tees. Descend to a wooden footbridge over a beck, taking care if muddy. Up the other side then back down to another wooden footbridge, then across the next beck via stones. Continuing up and down again and over another beck via stones.Now follow the path over duckboards and onwards through another wooden gate. From here you are into pasture land, follow the line of trees to your right, with the river further to the right. Continue to the gate which is marked with the two boundary markers for Middleton and Eggleston. These are cast iron ‘milk churns’. Through the gate into the next pasture, keeping straight ahead on the track on the left , then over a wooden footbridge to your left, still keeping to the river path. Please be aware that along this section the riverbank has become eroded in places and care needs to be taken if young children or dogs are in the group. Now the path goes uphill and at the top is a metal gate, pass through this and take the footpath sign to the right. Pass through a wooden gate and again follow the river on your right down to a footpath gate on the right of the field by the river. From here you can see the Beckstones Wath Bridge, or the millennium, bridge is it is locally called, 50 yards on. Cross over the bridge then follow the footpath straight ahead through one gate keeping slightly left to the field gate ahead. Go up the farm track and turn left into the lane. Climb uphill along the lane until you come to the T junction, turn right onto Lowside and 100 yds along turn left up past the Village Hall. At the top cross over the main road into Station Rd which you follow for 300 yards until it turns left, there continue straight ahead to the Mickleton Station Picnic Area. Here you meet the Tee Railway Walk, with a sign Middleton 2 miles, turn right onto the walk.Follow the Tees Railway Walk for 1 ¾ miles, continuing under a bridge then over the Lunedale Viaduct. Along here the way is clear with good views of the Eggleston Moor and Monks Moor to the right and the pastures to the left. Shortly after passing a bench on the right hand side you reach a farm house and caravan site, after the building there is a concrete footbridge to the right. Take this. (If by any chance you reach the road at this point you have gone too far - retrace your steps 50 yards and take the footbridge.)Now go across the field slightly left through a small gate and a gap in the wall onto the road. Turn left and 50 yards on take the footpath sign to the right, over a stile into a field. Cross to the left, over the stile to the next field and down to the next stile. Here you are starting to descend steeply so take care down the footpath onto a farm track by a wall, here you turn left. At the gate take the stile, continuing along the farm tack, with the Tees now to your right, past the farmhouse, following the path to the stile, up some steps and onto the road by the bridge.

Be careful here since there is no footpath on this side of the bridge so cross, turning right over the bridge and up Bridge Street back into Middleton.