Walking From Loughborough to The Outwoods and Back

So, most of the walks that I’ve previously shared with you are based around the town centre, and focus on heritage or history, like the Sculpture, Art and Architecture Trail, or the Zeppelin Trail, so I am pleased to be able to introduce you to a guest blogger who has either walked or run many of the footpaths, and towpaths around our wonderful town, and out into the countryside. I’m very lucky as he’s often taken me with him, well, not running, but certainly walking, so I’m familiar with the routes too! I’ve known Jon quite a long time, and I’m really pleased he’s agreed to write something for the blog, instead of listening to me talking about it all the time!

Over to Mr Lynneaboutloughborough (his words, not mine!)

View across Loughborough

Loughborough to The Outwoods and Back!

Loughborough is a beautiful town, often very underrated by those who don’t spend time in it, and even often by those who live, work, or visit there.  It is situated in a fairly wide river valley that gently runs down from Leicester and meets the River Trent at Trent Lock after about 25 miles, with Loughborough just over halfway along this route. 

On the Western side of the valley is a series of reasonably high areas, including Bradgate Park, Mountsorrel Castle and Quarry, Beacon Hill, the Outwoods, Garendon Park, and the Whatton Ridge. All of these areas are crisscrossed with public footpaths and bridleways, and having walked and run this extensively, I know there are paths running most of this distance almost without using public roads, and many paths down to Loughborough itself, the only major restriction is the crossing past the Great Central Railway. 

On the Eastern side of the valley are the Wolds, but there are more limited crossings for the River Soar and the Midland Mainline, however once you are on the other side there are similar footpaths and bridleways, with many beautiful walks. 

My favourite walks are along the River Soar/Grand Union Canal in either direction, walking from Cotes to Prestwold or Stanford Hall, Beacon Hill and from Loughborough to the Outwoods, which is the walk covered here.

One of the most notable things about walking around Loughborough is that you can see The Towers clearly from every direction when on the ridges surrounding Loughborough, and both the Carillon and the Parish Church are noticeable.

We're going to follow the red route on the map shown below, on which, as well as our route, you'll also see letters of the alphabet (A-R) showing choices of path, and notable features, etc.. There are also 4 blue routes that show more directions you might choose to follow. 

 

Walking to the Outwoods and back

This walk is around 7 miles long, and takes around 2 ½ Hours at a gentle pace.  It does involve walking uphill, with 1 section of 400m which is fairly steep.  The walk starts at the junction of Forest Road and Epinal Way near Mountfields School and ends at the Beacon Pub on Beacon Road.  Almost all of the walk is on Public Footpaths, about a mile is walking on pavements, with only a short stretch on a very quiet access road without any pavement.

You can shorten the walk to around 4 ½ miles by parking in the Nanpantan Sports Ground car park, which is on Watermead Lane.

I picked this walk as it is a regular walk for me, provides some exercise when walked briskly and has fantastic views over Loughborough.

Starting at the junction of Forest Road and Epinal Way, walk along the path called the Forest Green Belt, which runs between the cottages and Mountfields School. This is a quiet haven compared to the busy road, and is quite cool in the shade in the hotter, sunnier periods.  Note the flowers that bloom outside the cottage (Mountfields Lodge Cottage) which are immaculately maintained by Pat Cook, in memory of her husband, Harry Cook, and there are lots of fairy doors along the footpath.  

Mountfields Lodge Cottage beside the path in the Forest Green Belt

Noticeboard at the start of the Forest Green Belt

Fairy house

You will be following the Wood Brook for the first mile or so, passing the small, relatively new Urban Forest near the Forest Gate Pub, crossing over Holt Drive, you’ll pass the play park to your right, and crossing over Outwoods Road you’ll then pass the Lodge Farm Playing Fields to your left.  

Toby Carvery

The Tiny Forest

The Tiny Forest

The Tiny Forest

Looking back across the Forest Green Belt

Crossing Holt Drive

Crossing Outwoods Drive

People playing football at Lodge Farm

Note the allotments on the other side of the Brook, another Urban Haven (I have my own allotment on Beacon Road, and I can attest to the delights of quietly working on this to remove the stresses of modern life).  At the end of the path (A), turn right, past the new flats on the site of the old post office and small parade of shops and cross Valley Road to take the small footpath opposite.  

Exiting from Lodge Farm with postbox far right

Note the junction between the Wood Brook running towards the One Stop Stores and the smaller tributary Beck that runs alongside the path.  The Wood Brook runs up past the Nanpantan Reservoir, through the Outwoods towards its source in the fields on the other side of Beacon Hill.  We will see the Wood Brook later on.

Crossing Valley Road to follow the footpath

Crossing Priory Road

The path is another cool place in the sun, following the brook over a road, behind more houses and coming out in Moat Road, continue a little bit further and you’ll see a small Bridge (B) over the brook towards a green patch, the big Oak Tree straight ahead is one of my favourite trees, partially because I once sheltered under the sloping trunk during a major rainstorm.  

Path off Moat Road towards The Outwoods

Oaktree

To the left of the path is Pignut Spinney Marsh. Take a right after the oak tree and follow the path along the edge of the fields, initially beside the houses and then alongside the Nanpantan Sports Fields (where we follow the Wood Brook again).   This year the fields have Oats growing, but I have seen them with Wheat, Sweetcorn, Cabbage and Hay over the years.  You’ll pass the new soakaway at the new cemetery and then you turn left (C) up the farm track, where there will be a public footpath sign to the right (D) through the hedge and along side the fields [the path you’ve turned off is a private drive leading to Outwoods Farm].  Walk up the hill along the edge of 3 fields and you’ll get to the old-style kissing gate into the Outwoods (E). At this point, if you turn around, you get stunning views across Loughborough, including the Bright Red Woodbrook Vale School, the Towers hall of residence on the university campus, the former Astra Zeneca plant and to the Bluebell (AKA Burleigh) Woods.  Take a breather and you can also see Stanford Hall, the Parish Church, and across the valley.

Nanpantan sports ground

Oats

New cemetery

Approaching the kissing gate

Carry on along the left-hand path along the Outwoods, past the tall cliff of rock with the stunning strata showing.  You can cross the Outwoods on the Blue Line marked 1, which brings you out opposite a footpath that you can take to climb up Buck Hill, which is even higher and has great views of Nanpantan Hall and Home Farm, but that’s for another day. Continue along the path, noting the badger/fox gates in the fences on your left, and in May, the fields of bluebells under the trees on the right, until you reach the charcoal burner in a clearing in the woods (F), I’ve seen ground-nesting bees entering their hives in this clearing.  The Outwoods has many wooden carvings and benches and it’s worth reading the memorials, some of which are on the benches, to the many people who have similarly loved the Outwoods.  The last section is a little steeper but takes you up to the car park (G) where you can access toilets and Olivia’s café if you need to.  You are at the highest point of this walk now, so it’s mostly downhill from here, but the trees stop you having a view.  Most of the trees in the woods are now of native species as many non-native trees have been felled over the past 5 years.

Rocks

Charcoal burner

Trees and willow sculptures at the Outwoods

Carved sculpture

Cafe 

At the car park take the path that runs parallel to Woodhouse Lane and down to the Gate at H.  If you are minded to go up Beacon Hill, you can go through the gate, and follow the new pavement which takes you into the bottom corner of Beacon Hill Country Park (blue path marked 2), where there are many wooden sculptures, and beautiful Alpacas, Highland Cattle and Sheep.  It would be around 2 ½ miles to walk this, but Beacon Hill has fantastic views over the Trent Valley to the Peak District, and across Charnwood Forest.

However, for this walk we’ll continue to follow the path in the Outwoods to the left and down the hill, over the little wooden planking (this section gets very wet in the wet seasons, so I’m always thankful for the causeway).

Trees

Trees

The boardwalk

Then follow the path up and down until you reach a junction (I). Here, turn right along the path and you’ll come to a field, where you can turn left which will bring you down Beacon Lane after around a mile to the junction of Beacon Road and Valley Road/Belvoir Drive.  This path/lane is called Beacon Lane and is an ancient right of way up to Beacon Hill. But, we’re going to go straight across though and walk on the path down the field and turn right at the farm track/bridgeway (J) in the middle of the field, walking past the old School House and alongside another brook.  The bridleway becomes the access drive to the Schoolhouse, keep walking until you get to the T junction (K).  The forest golf course is on the other side of the trees straight ahead, but we’re going to turn left, as though we were going to Pocket Gate Farm, but we’ll immediately turn right towards the gate up the slope, another bridleway.  Whilst walking along this path, looking left gives you more views of Loughborough and across the valley.  Just before the trees end, Hanging Rock is behind the trees on your right.

Keep following the bridleway, you may meet horse riders along this path, and the path becomes and a single-track tarmac access road for the houses.  Occasionally you may meet cars coming along here, but there is space to step onto the verges.  You can see the golf course across the fields to the right-hand side, and occasionally golfers can be seen through the hedgerow.

Opposite the stone pillar (right-hand side of the road, L), there is a footpath sign, go through the kissing gates towards the trees.  You get a good view of the back of the former Defence Sixth Form College across the fields, and I’ve seen birds of prey in the trees here.  You can carry on instead of taking the footpath (blue path 3) and this brings you out in Woodhouse Eaves next to the Bulls Head.

Approaching the Old School House

View down to Loughborough

Pocket Gate Farm

Footpath to the left

Go through the woods, which can be very wet and muddy in the winter, but blissfully cool in the hot sun, you cross several bridges and go through very dense trees until you reach the fields which you keep crossing.   At the edge of the first field, you will see some blue Gimson railings and posts, there are several sets of these along the edges of the fields in this area.  Some of the fields currently have 6’ sweetcorn growing so the views are limited, but exciting for children. You will pass “Halfway House”, a farm halfway between Loughborough and Woodhouse Eaves along this ancient Right of Way, and across the last field towards the woods (M).  At the edge of these woods, you can turn tight along Blue path 4, which brings you out by Rainbows Hospice and allows you to pick up the path that skirts Grange Park from which you can pick the path to Beaumanor Hall or to Woodthorpe (another favourite walk of mine).

Muddy path

Blue Gimson ironwork

Hiding in the sweetcorn

Halfway House

We’re going to cross diagonally across these little woods though, which brings you out at the footpath that skirts the back and side of Woodbrook Vale School (N).  I once met a gentleman along this path whose family used to keep horses where the newer houses to the left of the path are located, and who had placed one of the branches that’s still there as a part of the “fence” to keep the horses in.

Path alongside Woodbrook Vale School

At the gates of Woodbrook Vale, turn left and follow the road until you reach Belvoir Drive, then cross and turn right and left down Pytchley Drive (O).  Many of the roads in this area are named after prominent fox hunts.  At Farndale Drive, turn right (P) and walk all the way down to the bottom, where you can see a small jitty joining up with Cross Hill Lane (Q).  There are good views over the field here and across Loughborough, and you can sometimes see rabbits, foxes, badgers or birds of prey.  I’ve seen many of these in Loughborough, even in the residential areas, and even Green Woodpeckers in the cemetery. 

Path to Cross Hill Lane between the bungalows

Turning left along Cross Hill Lane leads you to Beacon Road (R), close to the post box (which I think is an EIIR), where turning right here brings you past the William Davis depot, and the beautifully improved Beacon Pub with its Pétanque pitch, and ending at the Epinal Way Roundabout. 

Cross Hill Lane leads to Beacon Road

Estate pub called the Beacon Inn

One of these days, I will write a book of Loughborough Walks, but I hope you enjoy this one.

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Posted by lynneaboutloughborough

With apologies for typos which are all mine!

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