Parking
Start at Forest Holidays Cropton, YO18 8ES, using the cabin site's access. Follow the green waymarkers from the Cropton site; confirm parking/access arrangements with the site if you are not staying there.
Overview
About Little Beck Walk
Why go
- Short family-friendly forest stroll
- Clear green waymarkers
Heads up
- Limited scenic variety
- Return logistics are needed for the one-way route
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the North York Moors map
Full mapElevation135–170 m
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Best time to go
Safety
8 active North York Moors alerts
- ClosureHawnby Bridleway 110 closurePublic Bridleway 25.122/110/1 in Hawnby is closed to pedestrians, cyclists and equestrians because its bridge is unsafe. - The closure is between grid references SE 5309 9073 and SE 5335 9097.Official details
- ClosureWest Ayton Footpath 1 closurePublic Footpath 1 in West Ayton (Forge Valley) is temporarily closed because its boardwalk is unsafe. - The closure is between SE 9860 8494 and SE 9839 8712.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
North York Moors Tour Guide
Your drive to Little Beck Walk, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for North York Moors National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
Recorded for this area
Heather for the Steelworks0:00 / 0:24
“Near Stape, heather once had a job far from the moor. At the Leaf Howe smallholding, one family made besoms, or brooms, from it to help earn their living.”
Plays on the road 1.8 km from the trailhead in the Parkwolf North York Moors Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- A Moth in Broad Daylight
- The Dove That Purrs
- The Gate That Made You Turn
- Cropton's Castle Without Walls
- 298 audio storiesacross North York Moors’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Eurasian Otter, Red Deer, Grey Seal, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 126 trails, 65 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Little Beck Walk
The walk in shortThis is a point-to-point, one-way walk of 1.
This is a point-to-point, one-way walk of 1.7 km (1 mile) through the conifer woodland at Cropton, starting from the holiday cabin area and finishing near Little Beck. It is a short forest stroll on easy ground, good for a light family outing or a leg-stretch before or after a bigger day out on the moors.
Route and groundFrom the cabins the route follows a mix of forest roads and surfaced paths, with some gravel…
From the cabins the route follows a mix of forest roads and surfaced paths, with some gravel and firmer earth underfoot in places. It threads between blocks of planted conifers, passes occasional open clearings, and ends beside Little Beck. Green waymarkers are the navigation cue, so pick them up at the start and keep following them; junctions with wider forest roads are the main places to check you are still on the marked line.
Getting there and returningThe access point is the cabin site at Cropton, postcode YO18 8ES, near 54.315873, -0.838333.
The access point is the cabin site at Cropton, postcode YO18 8ES, near 54.315873, -0.838333. Because the marked walk runs one way to Little Beck, plan your return before setting off: most visitors simply retrace the same route back to the start, which roughly doubles the distance and time. Treat the site itself as private and keep to the marked route and forest roads.
DogsDogs are welcome on this walk.
Dogs are welcome on this walk. Keep yours under control around other walkers, cyclists and anyone working in the forest, and be ready to bring them close in on the wider forest roads where vehicles may pass.
Honest expectationsThis is a modest local walk rather than a scenic highlight, with no big viewpoint to aim for…
This is a modest local walk rather than a scenic highlight, with no big viewpoint to aim for and limited variety over such a short distance. Its appeal is quiet woodland walking that is easy to fit into an hour, and the woods can be pleasant in full leaf or in autumn colour. If you want a longer or more dramatic day, use this as a warm-up rather than the main event.
Wildlife
Wildlife in North York Moors
15 sightingsEurasian OtterMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
10 sightingsRed DeerMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
79 sightingsGrey SealMost seen around noonSighting map
26 sightingsWestern Barn OwlMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
33 sightingsEuropean BadgerMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
10 sightingsMute SwanMost seen around noonSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across North York Moors. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
