My Walking Journeys

Hello and welcome back to my blog 😊.

Today, myself and Mick enjoyed a 10.5- mile circular walk from Carlton Scroop to Marston and back again. I had done some of the route previously, but it was a new route for Mick.

Mick parked the car outside the church of St Nicholas – a grade 1 listed Norman church- in the small Lincolnshire village of Carlton Scroop. When we go walking we usually find that the local church is a good spot to get parking.

It was a chilly day once again. Rain was forecast for later in the morning so we had an early start to try and avoid the rain.

We left the village via field paths and could see a tall mast on the hillside. It is a microwave tower that was part of the cold war emergency communications system , ‘Backbone’.

As we were at a height we appreciated nice views across the distant fields. The clouds in the sky looked ominous though.

We reached a road and walked downhill to reach a farm track – we had joined the Viking Way, a long distance trail running 147 miles from the Humber bridge to Oakham in Rutland. We come across the trail quite often when we are out walking.

Our path took us along Frinkley Lane passing a wind turbine – it was interesting to see that the lower sections had been painted in graduated shades of green to blend in with the landscape – I’d not seen this before.

Continuing past Frinkley farm we crossed the very busy west coast main line and followed the lane into the village of Marston. As usual there were very few people visible on the trains.

We crossed over the river Witham and then stopped for a break at a handy bench.

We left Marston passing by the smelly sewage works and entered wide fields. The clouds overhead were getting darker.

Our undulating route took us up and down hills a few times and then the rain started. Rain turned into hailstones which were very unpleasant when they hit our face’s.

Thankfully, the shower only lasted about 15 minutes, but it was enough to give us a good soaking. Feeling damp, we strode across the remaining fields getting muddy boots. The sun was out again!

We had enjoyed a nice walk meeting very few people on our journey. Although it has rained, we both felt it could have been much worse and we had got away lightly.

Happy Walking! 😊🚶

Hello and welcome back to my blog 😊.

Sunshine was forecast for today and I was definitely up for a good walk. After scraping the ice off the car windscreen I headed out to drive the few miles to my starting point in Syston village. Unfortunately, I encountered a traffic jam on the A607 and, after not moving for 5 minutes, I did a U-turn and parked in the village of Belton. The delay turned out to be a road traffic accident. The Fire Brigade, police and an ambulance were in attendance as I walked past. I hoped the injured party was ok.

My plan was to do a circular walk from Syston to Barkston then to Marston and back. I had seen that the Vale of Belvoir ramblers had recently blogged this walk and I liked the look of it. As I walked through Syston the sky was blue and there was a smattering of frost on the ground.

It is a short walk from Syston into Barkston.

After walking through Barkston, admiring the fine stone houses, I found the footpath I needed and headed across a couple of fields. I was soon on a wider track that passed under the Grantham to Skegness railway line. As I avoided the puddles of water I noted that there was a thin layer of ice on them.

After passing under the bridge I walked beside Honington Beck, a tributary of the river Witham, which it joined after a few hundred metres.

My route continued across grassy fields. I met a chap walking his dog and had a chat.

The sun was shining and do you know, it had some heat in it. I was loving it! Passing beside the river Witham for a while, I reached another railway bridge – for the East Coast main line, just as train was crossing.

As I approached the tunnel I got the whiff of sewage in the air – there was a large sewage works on the other side! I noticed a sign that said the water company had spent £19 million upgrading the plant, which is good, but why the smell? Walking past quickly, I continued along the track to arrive in Marston village.

I was looking for a bench to take a break. I passed a fine Victorian school building.

I found a bench in a quiet spot and tucked into my usual scotch egg / coffee combo. Continuing walking through the village I crossed the river Witham.

After passing the village hall I took the track running through muddy fields that took me to a level crossing on the very busy main line. I was doubly careful to check for trains before crossing.

My route took me gradually uphill and when I reached the top I took in the nice views. Crossing fields, I would soon be heading down again.

I came across a group of Ramblers who were taking a break so said hello. They were happy with the fine weather.

Taking care on slippery muddy sections I wound my way back into Barkston, through Syston village and into Belton village. There was no sign that there had been a RTA earlier -just a few granules of oil absorbent on the side of the road.

Checking my OS App I had walked 10 miles. It was a perfect walking day.

Happy Walking! 😊🚶