A PROJECT to restore historic routes on the North York Moors has seen a once-popular horse-ride and walk put back into action.

The route by the Heartbeat village of Goathland has been restored thanks to work carried out by the National Park Authority’s field staff.

The original line of the public bridleway between Beck Hole and Thackside Farm at  Goathland crossed an old ford but changes in water levels and the movement of a large boulder downstream left it difficult to use and impassable at certain times of the year.

That meant many people abandoned the route –with walkers using a nearby footpath and riders switching to local roads.

But now a section of the bridleway has been diverted to connect to a nearby footbridge which has been widened to accommodate walkers, horses and cyclists. Signs have been put in place to guide users along the new route.

The work links with improvements to a bridleway between Hazel Head and Hunt House near Goathland, which involved widening and draining the eroded and overgrown lane to provide a better walking and riding experience.

The initiative is part of the Missing Links project which is re-establishing routes in the North York Moors that have been missing for many years for a variety of reasons.

By working with North Yorkshire County Council, funding for the project has been secured through the Department for Transport Local Sustainable Transport Fund.

Senior ranger Naomi Green said: “This restoration work brings an historic bridleway back into use and means that walkers, cyclists and horseriders can now enjoy a fantastic circular route from Goathland.”

Bill Tait from Ride Yorkshire added: “The new bridge is wonderful and, coupled with the other bridleway work, has made a vast difference to riding around Goathland.”

The Missing Links project is part of a wider scheme to boost sustainable tourism in Whitby and the Esk Valley which includes a park-and-ride site in Whitby and associated bus services into the town and to villages in the Esk Valley.

It is creating and improving six routes in the Esk Valley for walkers, cyclists and horse riders that connect with the Esk Valley Railway and new Esk Valley Hopper services.