Visiting

Skipwith Common National Nature Reserve, which extends to 265 hectares, is not only one of the most important Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Yorkshire for its heathland, but also for its woodland, ponds, reedbeds and fen.   Walking round the Common is like taking a mini wildlife safari: as well as the livestock – Longhorn cattle, Hebridean sheep and Exmoor ponies – there are healthy populations of roe and fallow deer.  Care must be taken not to disturb grass snakes, adders and lizards.  These habitats support, insects, and birds, including the rare woodlark and nightjar, as well as plants such as Marsh St John’s Wort and the Royal Fern.

There are three waymarked walks which enable you to explore and appreciate different aspects of the Common’s ecology and history:

Bombs and Lizards (Red Route) features the history of the Common, which was used as an airfield during WWII. Bays once used to store bombs have now been colonised by reptiles!

Hidden Archaeology (Blue Route) follows a trail past some of the Iron Age remains of the landscape.

Skipwith Explorer (Yellow Route) is the longest and includes a section through historic Skipwith Village via the Church.

There are three access points, with car parking available, down King Rudding Lane (off the A19 near Riccall), at Sandy Lane off Cornelius Causeway and along Common Road from the centre of Skipwith Village.

Parts of the Common are accessible by wheelchair users, particularly where hard paths and tracks remain from the Common’s wartime use as an airfield. At King Rudding Lane there is ample parking and kissing gates with enclosures to allow wheelchair access. From here you can follow the Red Route (see above). Some of the ground is uneven and a companion may be needed to assist over rougher patches. At the Common Road entrance (nearest to Skipwith Village) there is also ample parking and a partly paved path leading into the Common but this is rougher terrain. If you have any questions about access on the Common, please do email us at skipcomfriends@gmail.com.

You can download the Skipwith Common leaflet – which includes a map of the waymarked walks – on the Natural England website here: http://publications.naturalengland.org.uk/publication/9529076

Dogs are welcome to accompany walkers on the common, but due to the sensitive nature of the ecology – including an extensive population of nesting birds – dogs must be kept on short leads at all times so as not to disturb the wildlife or worry the grazing animals.