Hello and welcome back to my blog 😊.

On todays walk the Three Amigos enjoyed an 8-mile jaunt around some lovely English countryside. Our circular walk began in Ab Kettleby which is located 3-miles north of Melton Mowbray. The route (which I found on The Ramblers website – thank you Ramblers) took us to Saxelbye, Grimston and Wartnaby before returning to Ab Kettleby.

Ironstone was quarried in the area previously and the honey coloured rock was a feature of Ab Kettleby’s buildings. St James Church looked very attractive as we set off through the church yard into open fields.

Overnight we had some rain which was very welcome after months without and drought conditions. Passing through some allotments we saw some very attractive hens who seemed to be enjoying life.

A recurring feature of this off- the- beaten -track walk would be crossing numerous wooden stiles (some in poor condition) which were often surrounded by thorny vegetation and crossing recently ploughed fields – yes, its that time of year again. However, big views and no people were a plus.

I almost forgot, the ploughed fields had manure added to them, so crossing them meant our nostrils getting assailed by a very pungent smell indeed!

It is quite amazing how walking across ploughed fields saps your strength. By the end of the walk we were all feeling it in our leg muscles.

We arrived into Saxelby and found the building that was formerly Websters Dairy which, before it closed in 2020 (due to the chaos of the COVID pandemic), produced fine quality blue stilton cheese. Cheese had been produced here for 150 years. Such a shame.

Further down the lane we passed under an ornate railway bridge. This section of line is used for testing new trains.

Just around the corner we found a bus shelter and stopped for a break- the rule is, if you see an opportunity take it. Refreshed, we continued on soon arriving into the attractive village of Grimston, near the village green, although it was not looking green today.

We spotted a set of stocks on the green so had to investigate. Used as a form of public punishment in medieval times, offenders were locked in by their ankles for hours or days. They were subject to jeers and sometimes pelted with rotten food. The two prisoners at the stocks today seemed harmless enough though!

Leaving Grimston we passed through the church yard of St Peter.

We were now on our way to Wartnaby passing through rolling fields and ploughed fields. It was wonderful.

As we passed through Wartnaby I was struck by how attractive the church bell tower looked on St Michaels Church.

It wasn’t far from Wartnaby to Ab Kettleby so before long we were arriving back at our cars.

A thoroughly enjoyable walk!

Happy Walking! 😊🚶