Walking helps you to stay fit. There's no doubt about that.

Walking uphill is particularly good for toning yourself up. It sets the old heart and lungs pounding and pushes lots of oxygen into the bloodstream.

But walking on the flat is less demanding and, in health terms, less rewarding. Unless, of course, you are walking into a strong wind, which was what we found ourselves doing when we set out on this rural outing from Ripon to Fountains Abbey across the fields.

Getting our boots on was the first challenge, without the gusting wind sucking the carrier bags they'd been taken from out of the car boot and carrying them high into the sky on a day when there was much more blue than grey up there.

Once kitted out, we set off along the westward road from Ripon, leaning into the wind, before joining the equally exposed, clearly defined, soon fenced-off path between fields of sprouting winter crops. Ahead of us was the spire of Studley Church, built between 1871 and 1878 by William Burges for the Marchioness of Ripon.

But before we got there, there was the hamlet of Studley Roger and a deer park to cross.

Studley Roger is a cluster of attractive homes. A field beyond it is the start of National Trust territory.

The deer which are cared for there weren't hiding away. This was early November, the height of the mating season. Soon we found ourselves skirting a herd of red deer split into three groups, each with a dozen or so hinds being jealously watched over by a stag.

In the distance were groups of fallow deer as we walked up the road towards the church spire before forking off toward the lake. To our right were the grounds of Fountains Abbey - a tempting alternative to the planned route. But we had other pleasures waiting for us.

Instead we headed left toward the end of the lake and crossed its outlet before turning down the Valley of Seven Bridges. Here is where, in theory at least, the River Skell winds its way down a steep-side valley, sometimes past limestone cliffs, and crossed along the way by stone arches.

Sadly for the aesthetics of the place, the river tends to vanish after two or three bridges (depending on recent rainfall) and runs underground for quite a long way.

On this occasion, after reasonable recent rain, it made it above ground to one bridge further than on our previous visit, but then away it went, leaving a dry stream bed for walkers to cross at the fords.

Walking on into woodland with the wind behind us now and moderating by the minute, we crossed the Skell at a rather more modern iron and concrete footbridge then struck up a wooded valley away from the river, heading for a higher vantage point from which to view the surrounding countryside.

The lane we eventually found ourselves walking along was a delight. In the middle distance was a limestone cliff, towering over the resurfaced river. Further away, framed by trees, was Ripon Cathedral glowing in the sun, and beyond it, just visible in the haze, was the White Horse of Kilburn, etched into the hillside in the last century and consequently lacking some of the mystery of its prehistoric counterparts elsewhere - but a striking landmark, nevertheless.

Soon we were heading back towards the river and making our way via paths quite busy with dog walkers and families with children along a wooded walk back to our starting point.

Taking the boots off and putting them back into the bags proved no problem at all. The wind had vanished completely within the last couple of hours.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.