6.2mi Welton Loop Walk

Apr 9, 2023

4 min read

Updated: Oct 23

Welton lies beneath the southern Yorkshire Wolds, a short distance inland from the Humber Estuary. Our 6.2-mile Welton Loop Walk has its original Komoot GPS map directly beneath the clickable mileage-first title. It is a different recorded route from our shorter Welton Wold Circular Walk and the National Trail's Welton Wander. Use the original map to follow this particular circuit.

Walk at a Glance

Distance: 6.2 miles, as recorded on the original Komoot tour.

Type: Circular walk in the Welton area of the East Riding of Yorkshire.

Start and finish: Shown on the original Komoot map above.

Landscape: A village on the edge of the Yorkshire Wolds, with wooded valleys and countryside rising north of the Humber. The recorded route, not a separate walking guide, shows the exact paths.

Welton at the Foot of the Wolds

Welton is an old settlement near Brough, west of Hull. Welton Memorial Hall's local history records that the village has roots stretching back to the Domesday survey. A green, pond and historic church remain prominent in its centre, while higher ground rises into the chalk Wolds to the north.

The contrast between the sheltered village and the open country above it is part of this area's character. The Humber Estuary lies to the south, with farmland, wooded dales and the slopes of the Wolds further inland. Welton has long been a point of connection between these different landscapes.

The wider parish of Welton includes Melton and Wauldby. Older farm buildings, estate landscapes and surviving village features reflect a long agricultural history, even though modern roads and development are close by.

The Yorkshire Wolds Way

The Yorkshire Wolds Way National Trail starts near the Humber and continues across the East Riding and North Yorkshire towards Filey Brigg. Natural England records the full trail at 79 miles. Its first main section, from Hessle towards South Cave, passes through Welton and along Welton Wold.

The National Trail also publishes a separate 4.3-mile circular route called Welton Wander, with paths through fields and woodland on the higher ground. That is a useful additional walking option, but it is not our 6.2-mile Komoot circuit and the two maps should not be confused.

The Wolds are a landscape of rolling chalk hills, dry valleys, fields and patches of woodland. Much of their shape comes from geology and past farming, while the long-distance trail has helped make the area better known to walkers from outside Yorkshire.

St Helen's Church

Welton's Church of St Helen is Grade II* listed. Historic England records that it has fifteenth-century fabric and earlier origins, although much of what is visible today comes from a substantial rebuilding by Sir George Gilbert Scott in 1862–63.

The church contains a late twelfth- or early thirteenth-century knight's effigy, old stonework incorporated into the Victorian rebuilding and stained glass by William Morris and Edward Burne-Jones. Those details are valuable evidence of the village's much longer history.

The church stands in the village, but should not be treated as a guaranteed waypoint on every Welton walk. The Komoot line above determines whether this particular 6.2-mile circuit passes its entrance.

The Green Dragon and Dick Turpin

One of the more unusual stories attached to Welton concerns the Green Dragon public house. Historic England lists the eighteenth-century building at Grade II and records that the highwayman Dick Turpin was there when he was caught in 1739.

Turpin was using the name John Palmer, and his Yorkshire arrest helped bring his career as a horse thief and highwayman to an end. His trial and execution took place in York. The story is part of Welton's recorded history, although it is very different from the quiet image the village presents today.

The pub is a historic building rather than an automatic stop, and this article does not assume its opening hours or food service. Anyone planning a separate visit should check the business's current information.

Woods, Dales and a Designed Landscape

Welton Dale and the neighbouring valleys have been shaped by both nature and landowners. Planting, estate management and the creation of paths have altered parts of the landscape over the centuries. Woodland on the valley sides gives this southern stretch of the Wolds a different feel from the open fields on higher ground.

This older landscape explains why there are several distinct walking circuits around Welton. A path into a wooded dale, a long-distance trail over Welton Wold and a loop around the wider village can all be different walks. The original route on Komoot is the correct source for this 6.2-mile recording, not the route description of a nearby circuit.