THE LYKE WAKE WALK is a complete crossing of the North Yorkshire moors along their main east-west watershed between the Stone at grid reference 470994 and the Trig point at 971012, a distance of approximately 40 miles. Every person who completes a crossing of the Lyke Wake Walk on foot within a period of 24 hours and who reports it to the Club within 28 days, is eligible for membership. There is no membership fee. Female members are titled Witch and males are titled Dirger.
THE MAY 2012 WAKE will be held on Saturday 12th May at Swan House, which is just off the A19 about 5 miles north of Osmotherley. An Elders meeting at 6pm (administrative stuff) will be followed by the Wake at 7:30pm for an 8pm start. More information on the Wakes page.
SIXTIETH ANNIVERSARY: In 2012 the North York Moors are celebrating sixty years of being a National Park, and they have a number of exciting events described on their website. The Club is playing its part in these celebrations. We are sponsoring a short story competition with local schools, based on the unusual and weird place names in the moors. Stories will be displayed and winners announced in a special exhibition during the anniversary week in November 2012.
The Lyke Wake Walk Elevation Chart: The latest addition to our range of things to buy is the Elevation Chart (picture on the things to buy page) showing the ups and downs and highlights of your walk, available as a glossy A4 photograph or an A3 canvas print. Wicking T-shirt: Another recent addition to our range of things to buy is this wicking T-shirt: ideal to wear when walking, very light, wicking and soft to the touch. More information about both of these on the things to buy page.
Osmotherley Youth Hostel: use it or lose it: In early 2011 it was announced that Osmotherley Youth Hostel was to close at the end of the 2011 season. This is due to insufficient usage over recent years combined with the cost required to modernise the building. The New Lyke Wake Club strongly believes that this facility should remain open as it provides a vital facility. We have been informed that should there be a marked increase in hostel usage in the remainder of 2011, this decision will be reconsidered. Read more about Osmotherley Youth Hostel.
As usual, please respect the moors (Countryside Code) taking particular care during periods of adverse weather. The moors were on fire alert over the late spring bank holiday. During hot weather there can be a severe risk and the route may be closed at short notice – more about this on the Preparations page. Winter can be equally challenging: the Lion Inn at Blakey Ridge was cut off for eight days last winter.
Please avoid any disturbance to people who live on or near the route. Please refrain from bringing vehicles into Osmotherley and Ravenscar during ‘antisocial’ hours and likewise avoid making noise near residential areas such as Scugdale.
Equally, please take care not to disturb wildlife on this fragile environment that is home to a number of rare and important species. This is particularly true on Fylingdales Moor, which is now managed for conservation by the Hawk and Owl Trust.
Here you will find all the information you need to:
- tell you about the Walk;
- organise and achieve your crossing successfuly and safely;
- report your crossing to the Club;
- buy badges, clothing etc to celebrate your crossing, and
- come to Wakes to socialise with others who have made the crossing.
In addition you can:
- Read about Bill Cowley who, with others, made the first crossing and founded the original Club;
- learn more about the Lyke Wake Dirge;
- Read about the Club’s exhibition at the Ryedale Folk Museum.
- Read the Club's Objectives and Rules
The new club, a members' club, is a non-profit-making body whose stated objects are: -
- promoting interest in the North Yorkshire Moors, their history and folklore.
- assisting in safeguarding the moorland environment.
- encouraging the sports of long-distance walking and running.
- providing advice and fellowship for those taking part.
With the new Club on a sound financial footing, we intend to use the Club's future income from merchandise sales etc to the advantage of the Lyke Wake community. So far the Club has made a donation to help with the upkeep of the route in the area of the Lords Stone Café, and last year substantial amounts were presented to the two Search and Rescue teams which cover the North York Moors. For the future we propose to offer modest grants to young Dirgers and Witches who are unemployed or in full time education, in order to help them participate in an adventurous activity, project or training. More information is on our grants page.
THE NEW LYKE WAKE CLUB is dedicated to the memory of the late BILL COWLEY, who, with others, made the first crossing of the LYKE WAKE WALK on 1st October 1955.
Bill died on 14th August 1994. The ‘Old’ Lyke Wake Club closed down on its 50th anniversary on 1st October 2005. We regret the closure of the ‘Old’ club, but look forward to the future. We believe the ‘New’ Lyke Wake Club has a valuable function in recording crossings, arranging meetings in the form of Wakes for like-minded individuals and in campaigning for responsible access to the Cleveland moors under the CROW Act 2000.
THE COUNCIL OF ELDERS
The club is managed by a Council, which consists of the elected officers plus every Past Master and Past Mistress. The council of Elders meets formally at least once a year, but discusses issues informally on an ongoing basis.
POLICIES
The club supports
- reducing moorland erosion.
- defining the Lyke Wake Walk as a right-of-way.
- marking the Lyke Wake Walk on Ordnance Survey maps.
- discouraging excessively large groups on the Lyke Wake Walk.
- creating and implementing a programme for path repair and waymarking.
ALL EXISTING DIRGERS AND WITCHES are entitled to membership of the new club. Please fill out this contact slip and send it or email it to the hon. secretary.
You might also be able to help us to find other dirgers. Bill Cowley's filing system consisted of a tea-chest into which he threw letters after he had replied to them. When the tea-chest was full Bill made a bonfire of the contents and started again. Not much has changed since. Consequently our mailing list started out somewhat scanty. We shall be most grateful for any names and addresses you can let us have.
If you have a website please link to us! This will also help lost dirgers and witches to find us. The address to link to is http://www.lykewake.org
Contacting us
To be kept informed of Club events, please either:
- (Preferably) send your email address to our contact email, new.club@lykewake.org, or
- send a small pile of SAEs to our contact address:
Gerry Orchard, General Secretary NLWC,
Angram Grange, Cold Kirby, Thirsk, North Yorkshire YO7 2HL
COMMUNICATION BETWEEN THE CLUB AND ITS MEMBERS
The club maintains this website www.lykewake.org which is regularly updated. The secretary, Gerry Orchard, is happy to reply to E-mails sent to We know that not all members have an E-mail address. For members with a postal address the club prints off the website information as a Newsletter and this is always available. Please write to Gerry Orchard, enclosing an A5 stamped, self-addressed envelope. We are sorry but because of the high cost of postage, it is impractical to send out a postal Newsletter to everyone each time we update the website
