My Walking Journeys

Hello and welcome back to my blog 😊.

This morning, the Three Amigos met up for our first walk of 2026. We met in the village of Branston having driven along narrow country lanes covered in black ice- not recommended for nervous drivers! Our 8.5-mile circular walk would take us to the villages of Croxton Kerrial, Harston, Knipton and then back to Branston.

We walked through Branston and then climbed across our first stile into a field- the stiles would all be covered in ice so some care was needed.

The sun was rising above the horizon and the fields were frosty – it all looked very scenic. We continued up a slight incline which certainly got the blood pumping and warmed us up. Chris was setting the pace.

Looking behind gave us lovely views to appreciate.

Having reached the top, we crossed over the A607, and then headed downhill, again with extensive views.

We have had a lot of rain recently but the frosty conditions meant we were not trudging through mud.

After reached the bottom inevitably our route took us uphill – we were on an undulating walk! Just the thing to help burn off those extra calories from Christmas.

We soon arrived into Croxton Kerrial passing the church of St Botolph – a grade II listed building, which sits opposite the site of a ruined Medieval Manor House. We had explored the site on a previous visit so did not stop today.

We were headed for Harston and were enjoying the chat and catching up after the festive break.

This has to be one of my favourite local walks. I certainly get the sense of walking in nature which is good for the soul. Belvoir castle was visible high on its hill in the distance.

We passed parts of the old ironstone quarries which permeate this area.

After reaching Harston we had some road walking to do to reach Knipton – it was all downhill so that was easy. We were ready for a cuppa when we reached Knipton. We sat in the bus shelter where there was a wooden bench. All three of us had chosen Bovril to fill our flasks today- must have been something to do with the weather. I tucked into my Scotch Egg – the food of Gods! Someone said ‘I can hear horses’ next thing some hounds and a couple of horsemen were passing by – I forgot about my Scotch Egg and rushed to take a photo. They were probably part of the Belvoir Hunt.

After the break we noticed snowdrops in a garden – an early sign of spring and warmer days to come. We followed the road to Branston and after navigating a boggy field we arrived back at our cars. It had been a delightful walk.

Happy Walking! 😊🚶

Hello and welcome back to my blog 😊.

Today, the Three Amigos were out and about enjoying a 6-mile walk at Watermead Country Park north of Leicester. The park is a network of lakes, woodland and nature reserve created from 340 acres of ex-gravel workings along the River Soar. https://leicscountryparks.org.uk/parks/watermead-country-park/

The weather forecast was for a sunny morning, however, as we arrived the day was grey and overcast. Still, we were hopeful that the mist would eventually burn off.

I had downloaded a route that someone had put on OS Maps so we set off following this route. We soon discovered that the route was nonsense and so abandoned it. However, we did take a look in a two- level bird hide – it was very substantial. The mist was slowly lifting 😊.

All was quiet and still, just the odd dog walker or jogger here and there. We passed a container adjacent to a lake which had interesting graffiti painted on it – the container belongs to the Leicester Sup board club.

The path in this section was well constructed and Chris was setting a quick pace. He was targeting 3.4 mph.

Soon we were crossing a bridge over the River Soar. The water was moving swiftly following the recent rain and the level was high.

As we followed the River Soar we passed boats moored along the bank – smoke was billowing from their chimneys. It was a chilly morning.

We were now walking on muddy towpath – the pace dropped as we avoided slipping on the mud.

We walked beside Leicester Marina.

Reaching another lake we saw a lot of birds and a rat!

We climbed a hill where we found a Mammoth sculpture on top. The sculpture is called Silent Witness by Daniel Jones and is constructed from steel and concrete Apparently, the remains of a Woolly Mammoth have been found in the valley – 10,000 years have passed since the last mammoth passed this way.

Contrary to popular belief, the woolly mammoths were not really giants by appearance, but roughly the same size as modern African elephants, standing at heights of up to 12 feet at the shoulder and weighing about 12 tons. Their dense fur reached a length of up to a meter and had a fine undercoat of wool. Their ears and tail were small so as to avoid frost blisters.

Further along we came across a Polar Bear! He was a friendly chap and didn’t bite 😊

We crossed another bridge adjacent to a weir.

We passed some anglers fishing by the river. One was landing a large bream just as we passed by – he told Mick it was his eighth of the morning! The sun was out and it was blue sky heaven- wonderful!

Soon we were arriving back at the car. It had been a lovely walk – it’s always nice walking by water. There is more to explore at the Park so we will do that another day.

Happy Walking! 😊🚶