Like the rest of the world, I’ve been spending a lot more time closer to home. Thankfully for me, York is full of amazing places to discover! Recently, I walked the York Solar System Trail. I only found out about this in the last year or so, despite living in York for nearly 4 years now! This is a really unique thing to do in York, and it’s completely free. It’s definitely one of the best walks in York. Here’s everything you need to know about the York Solar System Trail!
What is the York Solar System Trail?
The York Solar System Trail is a scale model of the solar system, spread along 6.4 miles of a paved cycle route. This cycle route is part of the Trans-Pennine Trail, a 343-mile route on the National Cycle Network that goes all the way across the country. The York Solar System Trail is a stretch of 6.4 miles from York to Riccall and was constructed in 1999.
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There are scale models of all the planets in the solar system along the way. The models are done to scale, as are the distances. There are signposts at each planet to show how far away you are from the next planet—both on the scale model trail, and the actual distance in space! I loved this!
The York Solar System Trail follows the route of the old East Coast mainline railway service between York and London via Selby. It was re-routed decades ago to its current placement, but the railway line has now been paved for bikes and made into the wonderful path that it is. Ultimately, it’s easier to bike the Solar System Trail than it is to walk. However, as I don’t have a bike I chose to walk it! There’s not many instances I can say I walked 5,913,000,000 km in a day!
Walking the York Solar System Trail
It is much faster to bike the York Solar System Trail than it is to walk (obviously). It also wasn’t necessarily the easiest walk, as it is all entirely on a paved trail—I felt a difference in my legs from pounding the concrete pavement all day! All in all, the Solar System Trail is 6.4 miles and it took me just over 2.5 hours to walk. This included lots of short breaks for photo stops!
The Solar System Trail starts near the Askham Bar Park & Ride. You can park (for free) and then walk a very short distance to the starting point of the trail, the Sun. It’s easy to follow the trail—there is only one short section that goes onto a normal street, but the trail is still signposted. You can also load up the Solar System Trail on GoogleMaps if you want.
If you bike, you will most likely bike from York to Riccall, and then back again. However, if you’re walking I wouldn’t think you’d want to walk another 6.4 miles back to York after finishing it! Thankfully, I had a husband who was driving home from work through Riccall, and we timed it so he could pick me up at the end of the trail. However, there are regular service on Bus 415 between Riccall and York. So you could easily do the walk, and then take the bus from Riccall back to York.
Keep in mind that there are no public toilets at the very start of the walk, anywhere on the walk, or at the end. There are also no cafes/restaurants/pubs on the trail itself. There is a small “honesty box” café at Naburn near the bridge over the River Ouse, however I didn’t see much there. My guess is that with the pandemic, they want to minimize contact and everything was closed for this reason. There are a few pubs off the trail (in Bishopthorpe, Naburn, and Escrick) if you do want to walk out to one. However, it did feel like I had walked far enough already!
What to See on the York Solar System Trail
Each planet has its own scale model on the Solar System Trail. Along the way, you’ll also see Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 space probes, and a replica of the Cassini model. The Sun comes first, and hangs like a huge ball just in front of the A64 underpass.
Next up is Mercury. The first few planets are all very close together on the trail, so it’s only a few minutes between them.
Venus is next on the trail. It took me 2 minutes to walk between Mercury and Venus, and between Venus and the next planet—Earth. Earth also has a small model of our moon!
Mars is just another few minutes’ walk away.
Jupiter took a bit longer. After about 13 minutes from leaving Mars, I made it to Jupiter.
After Jupiter, you cross the River Ouse at Naburn, over the old swing bridge. There’s a really unique and funky sculpture on top of the bridge, called Fisher of Dreams.
The next planet is Saturn. It took me about 20 minutes to walk from Jupiter to Saturn.
One of my favorite parts was getting to see this Minster view! At the old signal station 4 miles outside of York, you can just see the tower of York Minster. I love that even being so far away from the city, you can still see the Minster!
Uranus is the next stop on the Solar System Trail. It took me about 35 minutes to walk from Saturn to Uranus.
After Uranus, you’ll pass through the area where Selby Coalfield was located. This was a large mine and has been closed for a long time. However, there are still a few bits left along the trail to signify the mining history of the area!
Up next is Neptune, the second-to-last planet! It took me about 45 minutes to walk between Uranus and Neptune. I really enjoyed walking this as you can both tell and feel just how far apart these planets actually are. Whereas the Sun, Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars are all really close together, the planets further out really feel remote and far away.
The last planet? Well technically it’s not a planet anymore, as we all know. Pluto was demoted from its planet status in 2006, however it has stayed on the York Solar System Trail as a dwarf planet. The last marker of the trail and the last scale model is just a few meters off the track up a slight hill. It felt like such a huge accomplishment getting to the end!
Planning Your Trip
Regardless of whether you walk or bike the York Solar System Trail, you will most likely be starting the trip in York as that’s where the Sun is. If you’re driving, the most convenient place to park is at the Askham Bar Park & Ride. If you’re visiting York by train, it’s a few miles out of town to get to the starting point of the walk. Take the Park & Ride Bus #3 from the city center. I always book my train tickets through Trainline to get the best deals.
Considering travel insurance for your trip? World Nomads offers coverage for more than 150 adventure activities as well as emergency medical, lost luggage, trip cancellation and more. There is plenty of accommodation to choose from in York. You can check out hostels in York here, or look at hotels and B&Bs here! Search for more options below.
The York Solar System Trail is a very unique thing to do in York! Whether you walk or bike, it’s a fun experience and you’ll definitely learn something along the way about the solar system. I hope post helps give an idea of what the York Solar System Trail is all about, and how you can see it yourself!
Have you ever been on the York Solar System Trail? Would you prefer walking or biking?
You might also like my posts:
The Best Walks in and Around York
20 Things to Do in York That Are Absolutely FREE!
York to Bishopthorpe: A Perfect Short Walk From York
The Best Car-Free Walks From York, England
All of my York posts and hiking posts!
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[…] Discovering The York Solar System Trail […]
This looks a really cool thing to do! As you say, it’s not often you could say you’d walked that kind of distance in a few hours… lol….or ever! Look forward to discovering it one day too!
It was really fun! Definitely one of the lesser-known things to do around York 🙂
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