The best walks and hikes around Biggin

Easy tracks to follow, not too wet or boggy, well-signposted.

The Church of the Immaculate Conception, Scarthingwell is a historic Roman Catholic church built in 1854 as the private chapel of Scarthingwell Hall, commissioned by Edward William Hawke-Harvey, 4th Baron Hawke. The hall was demolished in 1960, but the chapel survived and became the local Catholic church. It holds a unique distinction as the first church in England dedicated to the Immaculate Conception.

The site's religious history dates back to the Danish period, with an original St. Hilda's Chapel potentially existing as early as 500 AD. Medieval building: By the 12th century, the chapel was in ruins. A new Norman church, dedicated to All Saints, was constructed around 1213. Elements from the earlier structure were incorporated into the new building. Much of the present church has a dominant Perpendicular style from the 14th and 15th centuries. The distinctive, tall bell tower, which serves as a local landmark, was added in the 15th century.

One of two ways to access Bishop Wood. There is a small parking area just off Bishopdyke Road that leads you up Hammersyke Road into the woods. The other is Scalm Lane car park on the southern side of the woods.

Muddy but free off-road parking for more than a dozen cars, with a variety of tracks through the woods.

Grade I listed building. The surviving fifteenth-century structures formed part of a fortified medieval palace belonging to the Archbishops of York, which was dismantled in the aftermath of the English Civil War. The only remaining parts of the castle are the gatehouse and the banqueting hall. Stones from the destroyed castle were used in the construction of surrounding houses. The foundations of some other structures do remain as well as the castle's cellar, which was excavated in the 19th century. The gatehouse served as a courthouse until the 1930s, before being used as an officers' mess and a building for the Home Guard during World War II. The first fortifications on this site are believed to be those built by King Athelstan in the 10th Century.

Grade II listed swing bridge opened in 1872. The deck was submerged when the River Ouse flooded in 2015.

The oldest part of the church is the west wall, dating from the mid- or late-12th century. The chancel and south aisle were added in the 13th century. The church was first recorded in 1294, but is believed to have previously been a chapel of Cawood Castle. In the churchyard is a stone with a cup-like hollow, believed to have been used for depositing donations for lepers.