Dog-friendly Spofforth

Village inn on Spofforth High Street with a large garden, Yorkshire cask ales and twelve bedrooms named after castles, a short walk from the ruins of Spofforth Castle. Dogs are welcome on request, so let them know in advance, and some rooms are dog friendly for twenty pounds a night per dog.

Three miles each way along the trackbed of the old Wetherby to Church Fenton railway, converted to a path in 1992 and largely surfaced, dead flat and wide enough for two abreast, though the middle section can turn muddy in a wet spell. Start from East Park Road in Spofforth beside the ruined castle, or from the old Wetherby station car park at the far end if you would rather walk it the other way; North Yorkshire Council resurfaced a long stretch recently. Cuttings and embankments shelter it from the wind, which makes it a good winter option for an old dog, but it is shared with cyclists and horse riders so a lead is sensible; the Castle Inn in Spofforth takes dogs at the end.

The ruined fortified manor of the Percy family, standing free to enter at the edge of Spofforth village. English Heritage welcomes dogs on leads across the site, and it makes a good ten-minute detour on a walk in from the old railway line.