Vale of Belvoir Ramblers: February 2020

Bradgate Park and Three Peaks of Charnwood, 23rd February 2020

Scott's 8 mile walk took us from Swithland Wood up to Old John Tower (Peak 1, 216m) in Bradgate Park then down to Lingdale Golf Club. A gradual climb took us up to Beacon Hill (Peak 2, 245m) with views in all directions. We then dropped down to the Beacon Hill Country Park car park for lunch before diverting up to Windmill Hill (Peak 3, 147m) and then through Woodhouse Eaves and Swithland Wood back to the start.

Tricky going in Swithland Wood

Entering Bradgate Park

Ascent to Old John Tower

Nearby toposcope

The Beacon, wooden sculpture and trig point

The Doctor, in his new Tardis, practising his hand signals

View north over the Trent Valley

Grumpy old man - not surprising having to stand in all this mud

Windmill Hill observation tower, Richard observing

Ironville, Codnor Castle, Brinsley and the Cromford Canal, 19th February 2020

Note that this walk was cancelled due to poor ground conditions. It will now take place in April.

Ironville, possibly Derbyshire’s best example of a mid-nineteenth century model village, was created between 1834 and 1860 by the Butterley Company to house its workers at the nearby Codnor Park Ironworks which operated until the 1970s. The village, which stands at the junction of the Pinxton and Cromford Canals, is known for its houses built from iron slag, those on Forge Row near the start of the walk being a fine example.

The 8.5 mile walk will take us up to the remains of the 11th century Codnor Castle before dropping down to the Erewash Meadows Nature Reserve and then up to the outskirts of Brinsley. A long descent takes us to the Cromford Canal and back to Ironbridge.

Leaving Codnorpark Reservoir

Bridge over the filled in Pinxton Canal

Example of house in Ironville built from iron slag

Notice board near site of ironworks

View north from near Codnor Castle

Codnor Castle

Erewash Meadows Nature Reserve

Cromford Canal

Oxton, Epperstone and Woodborough, 9th February 2020

Woodborough

Storm Ciara kept all sensible walkers at home today except for a magnificent seven. So, starting at Oxton Church, off we went on John's 8-mile walk on good tracks to Epperstone for coffee and the opportunity to catch a bus home (or not). Then in better weather than expected we made it to Woodborough for lunch before the heavens opened near Calverton for the worst rain ever experienced by our group (allegedly).

The start point - St Peter and St Paul's Church, Oxton

Water Lane, Oxton

Good going for once - track up to Park Farm

Rain on the camera - waiting for the bus

Lowdham Lane - one of many fallen trees

Outflow from Oxton Bogs, source of the Dover Beck

Click here for an interactiive OS map

Bottesford, 02022020

On this palindromic day, there were two walks of 5 and 6 miles to the north of the village as well as a historic walk round Bottesford. Nottinghamshire Area Ramblers AGM, organised by the VBR Committee, then followed in the Village Hall.

Neil Fortey, a local historian, took one group from Bottesford's Victory Commemoration Hall to Easthorpe Manor, the site of a medieval manor house and residence of the Lords of Belvoir and later Earls of Rutland, then on to Easthorpe to cross ditches and raised mounds which are the remains on an abandoned medieval village.

We then crossed the River Devon past a terrace of 18th century workhouse cottages named after the Battle of Bunker Hill, fought in the American War of Independence. After some muddy fieldwork we reached Beacon Hill, set up for the Millennium Celebrations. We descended from the Beacon to St Mary's Church with is distinctive 65m spire and famous for its monumental Elizabethan and Jacobean tombs of the Earls of Rutland before crossing the medieval Fleming's Bridge across the Devon to return to the Village Hall.