Dog-friendly Crayke

Three and a quarter miles round the one proper hill in the whole Vale, climbing the short pull past St Cuthbert's church and the private castle to a view that runs to the Minster twenty miles off, then dropping back through fields; sixty metres of ascent and about an hour and a half. Park on the village street in Crayke or start from Easingwold two miles west and walk in; the 31X bus between York and Easingwold gets you within striking distance. Field gates and a couple of stiles, grazing sheep and cattle on the slopes so leads through stock, and a beck at the bottom for a drink; the climb is short but steep enough to matter for an old dog on a warm day, and the descent fields are slippery clay after rain.

A 300-year-old inn up the hill in Crayke, two miles from Easingwold, with rooms, serious food and long views over the Vale of York. The Tap Room is dog friendly (tables are limited, so mention the dog when booking) and the Pool Cabin is the dedicated dog-friendly place to stay. The village sits on the Foss Walk route, with Oulston and the river's source a morning's walk away.