Hello and welcome back to my blog 😊.

Today, Amigo Mick and I explored some more of footpaths of Nottinghamshire, enjoying a 9-mile circular walk from the quiet village of Halam to Farnsfield and back.

It was an undulating walk along good tracks/footpaths that incorporated sections of the Robin Hood Way. We met very little traffic along the route which we appreciated.

Parking in Halam was easy with plenty of places to park. The temperature was 12 Deg C as we set off on a lovely sunny morning. There was a cool breeze blowing.

It wasn’t long before we were heading uphill.

The good thing about going up is that views are probable, and indeed, they were.

We walked down a sunken lane (Robs Lane) which is an ancient packhorse track that might date back to Norman times.

Going along the lane I observed the exposed roots of one of the trees that lined the lane, they reminded me of a Octopus 😊

We were on the Robin Hood Way and passed a plaque that denoted the half-way point on the route that runs 105 miles from Nottingham Castle to Edwinstowe church.

The distinctive way markers were on the posts along the path.

Passing by Combs Wood we then followed paths towards Farnsfield. A very large marquee was in one of the fields and we wondered why – soon we saw the signs for the Southwell Ploughing Match & Show which is being held here on the 26th Sept. https://www.southwellploughingmatch.co.uk/

A large wind turbine stood stationary on a hill – was it too windy? surely not.

As we neared Farnsfield we saw signs for the Halifax Bomber Memorial, so took a detour to visit. It was an exceedingly well maintained memorial area on the site where a Halifax Bomber crashed on 6th July 1944 sadly killing all crew members. It was returning to its base near Selby after completing its second mission of the day bombing the V1 rocket launch site at Croix-Dalle in France.

I noticed that the memorial is on the Halam village sign entering the village. We took a break here using one of the benches. Continuing on we arrived into Farnsfield briefly before heading out of the village again. We were enjoying the sunshine and the views.

On the way into Halam we passed three vintage tractors proudly displayed in a front garden.

After a short stroll through the lovely village we passed a nice cobbled street before arriving back at the car.

It had been a very nice walk and once again we had explored new territory.

Happy Walking! 😊🚶

Hello and welcome back to my blog 😊.

Today Mick and I enjoyed a 10.5-mile circular walk from the Nottinghamshire village of Epperstone to Thurgarton. The weather forecast was for a hot day (again!) so we arrived at Epperstone village hall early and set off walking at 07:15.

We had walked to Epperstone from Woodborough last week and thought it would be nice to explore more of the area. https://oldblokewalking.blog/2026/07/14/enjoy-a-day-walk-discovering-nottinghamshire-villages/

Leaving the village hall we walked through the village admiring the lovely houses, eventually finding the footpath that would take us uphill and out of the village. The field had recently been harvested and hay bales lay scattered around awaiting collection. It was nice to look at the views and admire the beautiful English countryside.

At times the paths on the ground did not align with the map but we managed to get by.

Some fields were clearly ready for harvesting.

As we walked towards Thurgarton we started to get a glimpse of the Priory Church of St Peter.

An Augustinian Priory was built in the 12th century but dissolved by King Henry V111. It was a large priory rivalling the one at Southwell. After dissolution it fell into private hands at which point it was dismantled, apart from a tower. The church was restored in 1853.

Arriving into Thurgarton village we stopped by the war memorial for a break.

Here, we learnt that during World War1 Thurgarton had an airfield. We wondered where it was located. We took a look at the village sign close by. I always enjoy looking at these – they represent the important bits of a village.

Leaving Thurgarton we headed uphill along a straight concrete lane. In the air we could see a powered hang glider enjoying circling around, eventually it dropped down and landed.

I think we had found the site of the former airfield!

We continued along the straight road – we wondered if it was Roman in origin because it was very straight and the map indicated Roman ruins in the area.

The day was warming up and we were glad that we had started early. We had passed several streams along the way and they were all dry. The prolonged hot weather is taking its toll. Heading to Epperstone now we passed numerous fields full of hay bales.

We had a nice downhill walk into Epperstone, and soon we were arriving into the village hall car park – quite large and positioned at the end of the village.

We had enjoyed the walk and exploring new territory.

Happy Walking! 😊🚶

Hello and welcome back to my blog 😊.

Today, Mick and I enjoyed a 9-mile linear walk. We began in Bingham, Nottinghamshire and walked to Shelford. Then, following the River Trent, we continued on to Radcliffe-on-Trent. Finally, we caught a bus back to Bingham – the Nottingham buses are every 10 mins, which is great.

It was a beautiful blue- sky morning as we set off walking through Bingham. Mind you, it was still on the chilly side. Unfortunately, we started the walk at 08:00 so there was a lot of traffic on the roads because of rush hour. You forget just how noisy traffic can be. I was glad to reach the outskirts of Bingham.

We crossed the A46 using the pedestrian footbridge.

Soon, we were away from the traffic noise and heading into fields. We crossed a railway track using the level crossing. The stiles here were metal, with the steps arranged at angles, unlike traditional wooden stiles – I thought they were a good innovation and made crossing easier.

Continuing onwards we reached the former RAF base Newton, and its still remaining, iconic control tower.

The airfield was opened in 1940 and the runway was grass. As I walked past I could sense the history and imagined the Wellington bombers taking off and landing. Shortly after leaving the airfield we spotted a bench with a view and took a break.

From here we followed paths into the village of Shelford where we bumped into a walking group (Gedling Ramblers) outside the church. They were gathering for a 4.8-mile walk. We had a friendly chat with the leader and wished them a good walk.

We headed for the River Trent to where the old ferry crossing to Stoke Bardolph was located. The crossing ceased in the late 1960’s. Back in the 1300’s, the River Trent at this point could be crossed by foot, horse or carriage and a boat was only used during the winter months. Nowadays the river is too deep and fast flowing to cross without a boat. All that remains today are a few steps down to the river.

We stopped for a chat with a couple of women who were looking at the river. They smiled when we asked them ‘what time is the ferry due?’

The next leg of our walk was following the River Trent to Radcliffe, initially along the wide grassed bank then uphill to the cliffs.

The day was getting quite hot now and we were glad to get some shade walking through the wooded path ascending the cliffs.

Having reached the top we had a nice walk along a long shaded pathway.

We were on the ‘Trent Valley Way’ path. I spotted a tree stump to have a rest.

Soon we were descending into Radcliffe and caught our last view of the River Trent.

We headed for a bus stop and didn’t have to wait long before the bus arrived. We had certainly enjoyed the weather and the walk.

Happy Walking! 😊🚶