Welford by Kathy
Kathy will be leading this excellent 8-mile stroll through some lovely countryside.
We will park up as usual in the marina car park at the back of The Wharf Inn (///timed.soil.fuss). After walking past Postman Pat et al, it’s a brief stomp through the village until we find Hall Lane. This is, in fact, a bridleway, and we follow it all the way to the canal. We cross over the bridge and turn west to head along the towpath – the canal should be on your left.
No hills or stiles along this section, and we stay on the towpath until we reach South Kilworth Road. Here we veer off to Sybole Farm and Downton Farm, if only to fill noses with farmyard smells. Then it’s back onto the towpath until the medieval village of Downton – which we probably won’t see much of!
After a detour through a field or two, it’s back onto the towpath until just after we pass Park Farm. At Bridge 37 (South Kilworth Road Bridge), we go under the bridge and then up onto the road. Over the bridge on the other side is a footpath – the Jurassic Way.
This path takes us up a slope to the top of the Hemplow Hills. Yes, we can go around it, but we still have to get up to the same height. We are now in northwest Northamptonshire near the Leicestershire border in the heart of the English countryside. It may have been a stiff climb, but the stunning, panoramic views from the top make the effort well worth it.
We stay on the Jurassic Way and head along Hemplow Drive. The way is much less steep as we descend to cross South Kilworth Road again. We are now on West End as we continue to drop back into Welford and make our way back to The Wharf Inn, where sustenance awaits.
Note: I have no recorded stiles along this route, so either there aren’t any, or I haven’t traversed it!
TuesDay Walks
These walks are longer than average and range from 8 to 13 miles.
Walks starting from the car park will be at the earlier time of 9:00 a.m.
Information about trips by Bus will be posted on the website and the WhatsApp group.
Provisionally, walks are planned for alternate Tuesdays.
This list will be updated from time to time.
9th June - Welford by Kathy
23rd June - Hallaton by John
7th July - T.B.A.
21st July - Youlgreave, Derbyshire by John
4th August - Kinder Scout, Derbyshire by John
18th August - Cranoe by John
1st September - T.B.A.
15th September - Twyford by John
29th September - T.B.A.