START from the village centre, parking at village hall on Church Lane.

The estate village of Harewood sits outside the entrance to Harewood House, one of Yorkshire's premier stately homes.

Harewood House is the seat of the Earl of Harewood, and its fine pedigree includes interiors by Adam, furniture by Chippendale and an extensive art collection. Along with its bird garden the house is open to the fee-paying public.

The successful release of Red kites locally has made these colourful raptors a regular sight soaring above.

Begin by advancing along Church Lane which becomes a private road through trees to emerge with a prospect across the Wharfe Valley to Almscliff Crag.

A short detour left leads to All Saints church, while the access road continues along the brow.

Around this stage you are most likely to encounter the herds of deer that frequent these grounds, with both Red and Fallow in evidence.

The road drops to a bridleway crossroads: keep left on the main one swinging along an open pasture to Harewood Yard, which includes the estate office.

Advance straight on, through a gate and down another access road to cross Stank Beck. Keep straight on, joining another road from the left and rising steeply past a lone house.

A little further, bear right at a fork past a tall wall, past which keep right again at another fork through a belt of trees. This rises outside Carr Wood to Carr House.

Before continuing, look back for a glimpse of Harewood House and its lake.

Rising past the buildings a track continues up into trees, swinging right on merging with a broader track. This steady rise doubles back left onto a brow, ignoring a branch right through a gateway.

The level track runs through woodland, noting a cluster of buildings over to the right that is the set of Emmerdale.

The track runs on to a triangular junction, where bear left down to a graceful stone bridge. Turn right over this and the track leaves the trees to ascend spacious parkland, soon offering a view back to Harewood House.

Ultimately it runs a high, level course to approach large gates by a lodge, now with a better view of the house.

Beyond the gates is the Leeds-Harrogate road, avoided by a permissive path remaining within the grounds: in the unlikely event of it being closed the only alternative is either to tramp the last mile along the road, or extend the walk by rights of way further east.

Turn left in front of the lodge onto the Wallside Path. Dropping to a gate into a plantation, the broad path runs a splendid course, never far from the high estate wall.

Broadening, ultimately it reaches a gate: here a footpath is deflected right to a ruin. Pass through the gate in the estate wall onto the busy road, and a footway goes left to finish.