Latest News

This year we are changing the route of our YHCT’s Yorkshire Churches Day Ride and Stride

Event on Saturday 13 September 2025.

We are celebrating the architectural heritage of our SAPT churches and Rievaulx Abbey and joining in the National Trust’s Heritage Open Days Festival which takes place over the ten days of 12 – 21 September 2025 and has the theme of “Architecture.” 

There is a rich collection of Saxon/Medieval, Elizabethan, and Victorian churches, and Rievaulx Abbey along the route of the SAPT for us to capitalise on this theme. So, all our churches will be showcasing their heritage, and we hope this will be complemented by exhibitions, installations, and displays by local artists.

This will be especially the case at the Church of All Saints, Helmsley, where our new All Saints For All People (ASFAP) Project Team led by Richard Hiscocks and supported by our two new Heritage Activities Officers, Claire Midgley and Laura Turner will be showcasing the development plans for the conservation of our medieval Grade 11* listed parish church and Edwardian wall paintings. They will also be focusing on their plans to engage and involve new audiences and enabling them to gain hands-on experience in the conservation process.

The weekend of 12 – 14 September looks likely to be very busy then! It starts on the evening of Friday 12 September with Helmsley’s very own locally and nationally renowned Martin Vander Weyer giving a talk on the famous architect Temple Moore’s churches in our area and his work with the indomitable Vicar Gray, priest-in-charge of All Saints, Helmsley 1870 – 1913.

Our two intrepid pathfinders, Joyce Garbutt and Mal Gyte, are hard at work mapping out our new Petal Walk routes – short round walks for families around each of our churches. Petal walks are now planned and mapped for Saint Mary Magdalene, East Moors, All Saints, Hawnby, All Saints, Old Byland, and at the Closed Church of Saint Michael’s, Cold Kirby.

Meanwhile the indefatigable Reverend Peter Clark is busy meeting our challenge of placing a labyrinth at or near each of the church stages along the SAPT route. We now have labyrinths at East Moors, Bilsdale, Old Byland, and Rievaulx Abbey. Next up, I believe, is Scawton!

Stop the Clocks! We have established our first accessible Petal Route for disabled ramblers on the SAPT starting at the Church of All Saints, Old Byland and following a circuitous route to Rievaulx and back. This was mapped out by a large group from the UK Disabled Ramblers Association on trampers in glorious sunshine on 13 May 2025. Check out the route details and pictures. It’s all happening on the SAPT and it’s going to be even more interesting in September! 

YHCT’s Yorkshire Churches Day Ride and Stride on the SAPT 13 September 2025:

1. This year our Ride and Stride route will visit three of the famous architect Temple Moore’s churches in Upper Ryedale and Helmsley. Start at the tiny and hidden church of Saint Mary Magdalene, East Moors, built in 1882 and was the then budding architect’s first church that he designed. Built with its characteristic painted wagon roof and stepped bell tower, it was praised by the Art and Architectural historian Nikolaus Pevsner, heralded in a poem by the Poet Laureate John Betjeman, and had its praises sung in April 2025 by the adventurer and social influencer Alexandra Tolstoy (yes, that Countess!) when she completed the SAPT with a group of friends.

(Because of the extremely limited parking at East Moors we will be asking participants to park in Helmsley, and we will be arranging transport for walkers to East Moors from the long stay car park, by the start of the Cleveland Way.)

2. From here the route will follow the SAPT to Roppa Wood, then turn towards Cowhouse Bank and follow the track below Helmsley Moor to the bottom of Baxtons Bank. The route will continue along this track until shortly before meeting the B1257 it climbs up to Newgate Bank Car Park and viewpoint for coffee and cakes, and toilets. 

3. The route crosses the B1257 and drops down past Broadway Foot and over the River Rye at Shaken Bridge, before climbing up and over to Tylas Farm, the original site of Byland Abbey. We will have a (packed) lunch stop at Tylas, courtesy of Jane and Ivan Holmes, before heading alongside the River Rye, over the ancient Bow Bridge and into Rievaulx. We will stop at the Methodist Church (built 1887) and the

Church of Saint Mary the Virgin, originally the slipper chapel of Rievaulx Abbey and rebuilt as a village church by Temple Moore in 1906-7 adding a chancel and small steeple.

4. The route goes left, crosses the road, and climbs the Rievaulx Bank path to the National Trust’s Rievaulx Terrace, turns left at the gate here and heads along field paths to the Historic England site of Griff Farm. Then on to Griff Lodge and down Ryedale and on the military road through magnificent Duncombe Park (thanks to Jake Duncombe), with its stunning views of Helmsley Castle and the Walled Garden.

It ends in Helmsley at Temple Moore’s magnificent 19th century rebuild of the ancient Church of All Saints for a short service followed by tea and refreshments. 

Please see the map of the route. Further information and details will follow later this summer.

Did you spot that the latest June edition of Yorkshire Life featured an article on the Spring SAPT Gathering Lent Walk led by Bishop Barry and Archdeacon Amanda? The SAPT also featured in the BBC Radio 4 Sunday programme on pilgrimage on Sunday 25th May- thanks to Anne Stewart, and again with a short excerpt on Sunday 1 June. Every time we get a media mention or social media mention, like Alexandra Tolstoy’s Instagram feature, we get quite a spike in visits to this website:

I hope that as many of you as can join us on 13th  September; it promises to be a great architectural walk.

George Gyte