Carlby - Witham - Toft - Manthorpe - Braceborough - Carlby

Thu, 2015 Oct 29 9:53 AM BST

With Gordon and Maureen. Grey and threatening to drizzle, but we were dry until the last section. Muddy underfoot in places. Around 9 miles (without my last 1.5 miles to retrieve my map!)

We decided to risk the forecast poor weather, and in fact we were lucky. A little rain early on, then the odd spot of drizzle.  Underfoot was fine apart from a few ploughed fields, but at least these were flat, though a little sticky. Towards the end the path crossed some fields of wet plants, so my feet were a bit soggy. 

In Carlby we walked along High Street north west. Soon after the road bends to the left is the footpath, off to the right. It's the second footpath sign, and not very obvious, so we overshot and had to return. Once found, it was fairly easy to follow, as it hugs the field edges for a while, then heads slightly east of north.

There were a couple of recently ploughed fields to cross - a seasonal hazard which makes boots heavy and legs tired.

Boot scraping in progress

We arrived at Witham on the Hill after about two miles.  We had a brief pause to don wet weather gear, then it stopped raining . . .

Ready for anything?

 Just below the roof of the old school is the following inscription:

Train up a child in the way he should go

When he is old, he will not depart from it.

We walked along the road past the church, then the green space with playground, and the stocks, then turned right along Bottom Street. We followed the track towards Witham Lodge, and when it ended at a field with some cows, we turned left along the fence. this led us to the footpath going east towards Toft.

It emerged in Toft just before the village sign, and a bridge, which should cross the East Glen River, though this appeared to be dry. I was impressed by this sloe bush.

Shortly after the bridge we crossed the road to take the footpath which goes through Toft golf course, heading south towards Manthorpe.  

There are marker poles, but they were not easy to follow. Luckily the golfers seemed quite happy to redirect us when we wandered!  Plenty of them there on a damp Thursday morning too.

Manthorpe has a stone engraver and a farm shop where I bought a jar of honey, but no handy benches. I was amused to see a "Beware of the Dog" sign, and then down the farm drive, a little pottery dog. However the barking from inside the house reinforced the warning.

We needed a break, so perched on the wall next to the stile at the start of the next footpath, towards Bowthorpe Park Farm. We feared we might have to cross a forbidding-looking ploughed field, but our route veered left away from it. Phew. 

At first the sheep ran away, then turned back and came towards us, then followed us as we walked through the field along the path. 

We crossed a footbridge and went uphill to Bowthorpe Park Farm. This is the site of the Bowthorpe Oak. We paid our £2.50, which the owner gives to the Air Ambulance, and went to see this massive tree. It is said to be over 1000 years old, and may have been planted when William the Conqueror was alive.

Although the trunk is split, the tree has plenty of leaves.

I'm not sure how it compares with Sherwood Forest's Major Oak.

We went back to the footpath, which passes to the east of the farm buildings, and followed it south to join the track to Spa Lodge near Braceborough.  We passed the old Station House, with its decorated garage doors, and walked into Braceborough. 

Just after we turned right at the end of Spa Road, the footpath goes off to the right, past a large garden. We took the right hand fork when the path split, and walked over a field, then west past Braceborough Lodge, through Braceborough Little Wood and followed the markers towards Carlby. Rain tempted us into a shelter for another snack. The rain stopped and then it was a short mile back to Carlby, across fields and the dismantled railway line. 

A Lincolnshire cairn

Steps up from the old railway line

The path 

Map and details

Braceborough, Shillingthorpe Park and Wilsthorpe

Mon, 2015 Oct 12 9:35 AM BST

With Gordon, on a fine autumn morning. Excellent underfoot, good views. Around 9 miles. Some sections of quiet road.

We set off from the church and walked along the road out of the village (signposted Greatford) to the main Greatford to Carlby Road. 

Braceborough Church spire with a blue sky background

Another thatch animal

At that point we took the footpath next to the road sign which heads gently up the mini-hill, round the field the farmer was working in, across one dry ploughed field

The farmer is busy

 and into the woods of Shillingthorpe Park.

Heading into Shillingthorpe wood.

Shillingthorpe Hall was used as an asylum for the insane, and a convalescence home during WW2.  It was demolished soon after the second world war. For an old photograph and some information see here.

More subtle autumn colours

We turned left and followed the track through the woods, past some lying-down cattle and down over the River.

River West Glen in Shillingford Park

The path comes out opposite a private road. We turned right and walked past the level crossing. There is a notice saying that the authorities are considering closing the crossing altogether - probably to reduce accidents. (More of this later).
We continued along the road until we reached a by-way leading to a ford, which now has a footbridge, and then a bridge over the railway.

Near the "ford" by the footbridge over the main line

After negotiating these, we followed a bridleway northward, mostly along field boundaries and very clear. There are fine wide views all around, but not very eye-catching for the camera.  This was the highest ground on the walk, and certainly caught the wind today.  We found a sheltered spot in the sun for a break, before continuing to the road between Greatford and Carlby. 

A few hundred yards along the road we were able to turn left on another footpath, just after Grange Farm. It looks as though the path should go diagonally over the field, but two sides of the triangle round the edge were much simpler. It passes south of Braceborough Wood, which is accessible to the public, then heads east over the fields to Braceborough, close to Spa Road.

Here we were tempted by free apples, and fell into conversation with the owner of the house. He recommended a couple of nearby walks, including one to the Bowthorpe Oak, which has to go on the "to see" list. 
He also said that when the level crossing mentioned above is closed, there will be an alternative route for walkers. The Macmillan Way uses the route. 

We followed one of his recommendations and extended our planned walk by another mile or two, by walking out of the village on Spa Road, as far as the old Station House, taking the drive to Spa Farm, and finding our way from there on to the disused railway - this is not an official public footpath, but makes a pleasant walk, once you've found your way down to the track.

Dismantled railway track from Braceborough Spa

Not quite as bad as it looks! Bridge over East Glen River

 We left the railway track at the road into Wilsthorpe, turning right past Gate house, Waterworks Farm and Coombe Farm Kennels, passing the road to Braceborough, walking as far as the church. There was an exhibition in the church, but we didn't visit it today.

Wilsthorpe Church

Instead we went along the footpath opposite, to our right, which took us over fields, and across the East Glen River, then turned right along a farm track which took us back to Braceborough Church.

Braceborough church, still sunny

Map and details

Braceborough, Greatford, Shillingthorpe Park

 Sat, 2015 Oct 10 1:19 PM BST.
Recce for part of a possible longer walk. Grey, but dry and good conditions underfoot. Just over 4 miles.

Braceborough Church

Braceborough has an interesting past. According to Wikipedia

Braceborough Spa, rising in the grounds of Spa House,^[4] was popular in the Victorian era for its natural spring waters. A bath house was built in 1841, and Doctor Willis treated George III here for his 'madness'. His royal patient stayed in a wing of Shillingthorpe Hall nearby, now demolished; there is a tablet in Greatford Church commemorating his stay. 

Shillingthorpe Hall was built in 1796, possibly as an extension of the asylum at Greatford Hall run by Dr Willis.

The walk was taken from an article by Will Hetherington in Rutland Active magazine.

I parked near the church and I extended the walk a little at the start, by taking the footpath  east which joins the farm track, instead of the path directly across the field heading southeast. They both join the Macmillan Way, though it's not brilliantly signposted. This takes you to the road into Greatford. If you wish to visit the church you will need to make a short detour from this route. See pictures from this previous walk. (That route is not possible, since the footpath over the railway has been closed.)

In Greatford, turn right into Greatford Gardens and walk along to the end, where the gates and boundary of Greatford Hall are protected with some vicious looking razor wire.  Follow the footpath to your right, and then left through the trees. Turn right at the end of the woods. This is where I saw a few fallow deer on the field nearby.  I've seen them around here before.

They stood and watched me briefly before moving off.

You follow the edge of the field for a short distance before turning left and across fields to the path through Shillingthorpe Park.  I met a group of walkers using the same footpath - this doesn't often happen round here.

The house, where George III is said to have stayed, and which was used as a convalescence home during the Second World War was demolished after the war, and the parkland is mainly used for cattle.  The track runs uphill through the woods and on to open fields with views to the east.

Tractors have been busy ploughing recently, but only one of these paths was across a field, and that one dry.

The path leads down to the Greatford to Carlby Road.

Cross this and take the quiet road back into Braceborough.

When I was there there were lots of free apples and pears on offer - one with the sign:

"Help yourself, but if you use the ladders it is your responsibility." Another requested donations for the Leicester and Rutland Wildlife Trust.

I also had a brief chat with a beekeeper, who unfortunately had no honey with him to sell, but was moving bees.

Map and details