Skip to main content

Walking the National Forest Way (with a two year break)

Remember when it was lockdown and we were all stuck in our houses for months on end? Well, way back then I hatched a plan of walking the National Forest Way as a family project. I ordered the map, downloaded the route guides, and we did the first section in 2021: Yoxall to the National Memorial Arboretum (Stage 12).

The photos tell me it was a beautiful April day - I was wearing shorts! The 5-mile route was pleasant, across fields and through scraps of woodland, then hopping over the Trent and Mersey Canal into the village of Alrewas. After that we had a hair-raising walk along a pavement right next to the A38 dual carriageway, with cars zipping past at 70mph, but fortunately that was a very short section before we turned off towards the National Memorial Arboretum. Of course we had to celebrate with an ice cream - why else would we finish at the Arboretum instead of starting there? 

Smaller boys! Lockdown haircuts!

At the finishing point


A well-deserved treat

There followed a very. long. gap. The next part of the route didn't look that exciting, to be honest; it had been a bit of a hassle parking a car at each end so as to be able to do a one-way walk; and the rest of the family weren't quite as interested in this project as I was.

But the idea never quite went away, so in April this year I dusted off the OS map and realised I could make the next few sections into some nice loops, thus removing the need for two cars. Of course, this meant I couldn't get quite as far along the trail in one go, but that didn't matter.

So, almost two years after walking Stage 12, I set out from Yoxall again, this time heading north for Stage 11. The route was mostly country lanes and fields - not too exciting, but enlivened by a beautiful wood full of daffodils. It had been raining hard so I was glad for wellies. I was also glad that the fords en route came with footbridges; the streams were running too fast for me to attempt them, even in waterproof boots. I had a snack at the picnic area at Jackson's Bank (my turnaround point) and made it back to Yoxall for lunch.


Setting off from Yoxall

Daffodils in Woodmill woods


One of the two fords

The second half of this section took me from Jackson's Bank to the tiny village of Rangemore. It was a gorgeous Easter Saturday with tons of sunshine. Graham and the boys had gone to see the racing at Donington Park, so I had plenty of walking time. The wood near the car park was full of families, but after that first half-mile I hardly saw another person. I disturbed a few pheasants, though!

Jackson's Bank (owned by the Duchy of Lancaster)

First bluebells I've seen this year

NFW waymarkers

There was a regular hum of light aircraft taking off from Tatenhill Airfield. The path ran alongside the airfield, then around St George's Park National Football Centre. Rangemore was quiet, but someone had thoughtfully provided a picnic bench in a square of woodland next to the church. After lunch, I retraced my steps for a mile or so, then ducked onto the Cross Britain Way for a short section. It took me through a very pretty woodland. Then I headed across some fields, with enormous views south, and back to my starting point.

The dome of the National Football Centre

Lunch break!

National Forest in progress

It may well take another two years to reach Beacon Hill - the eastern end of the National Forest Way. But I'm planning out the next few stages, so watch this space. I may even bring the family along on some of it, too.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Greece is the word! Part 2: Epidaurus

For the first part of our Greek holiday, see here . Day 4 - continued After much waiting around, we acquired a hire car and set off for the second part of our holiday. I am so glad that Graham can get into a strange car in a foreign country and drive away with no problems. I would be a nervous wreck. Even Graham was a little spooked by the Athens traffic - very narrow lanes crowded with cars and buses, and mopeds zipping in and out of every available gap. I had left Google Maps set to "avoid tolls", which meant that we stayed off the fancy new highway and took the old road towards Corinth instead. There was practically no traffic, so although it was slower, it felt very relaxed. We passed hills, hotels and oil refineries. Along the way, we stopped at a supermarket for supplies and drank Green Cola at the beach over the road. Crossing the Corinth Canal at Isthmia, we started heading south through the mountains of the Peloponnese. The sky had been growing darker and darker, and...

Greece is the word! Part 1: Athens

The last few times we have been on holiday, my family has asked, "Mum, are you going to blog about this one?" It's felt like an overwhelming task. For a start, we now have FOUR phones with photos on, rather than one digital camera. Also, I regularly write quite long blog posts about three-hour walks. How on earth will I summarise a full week's holiday? But this time, I thought I should try. It's one of the most enjoyable holidays we've had in a while, and I've definitely done too many Peak District posts recently. Everyone needs a change of scenery. So here we go, jetting off to Athens. Day 1 We landed at Athens airport in a looming thunderstorm, but the worst of the rain held off until we'd made it safely to our apartment. Graham had earmarked a nice little restaurant called Lolos for dinner - eating shell-on prawns in tomato sauce was a deliciously messy experience - and we went to bed early after our 3am start. Day 2 Next day we climbed Philopappos ...

Derwent Valley: Derby City and the Derwent Pilgrimage

It was 8 am and I was already hayfeverish, headachey and hot. Why on earth was I setting out to walk through the middle of Derby, when I could be up in the hills of the Peak District? No one was forcing me to do this section. I could skip it entirely. But I knew I wouldn't, because this was the next part of the Derwent Valley Heritage Way. And besides, I had a suspicion that it would be better than it looked. Alvaston Park was certainly a good start. It's a wide sweep of green grass and mature trees. I used to come here quite often when the boys were small. I was glad to see some of the planets were still there - although Mars has had a lot of feet standing on it, I think. Here's a tiny Toby in 2013 with Mars... ... and a more battered Mars today. Alvaston Park I kept off the roads for a while by following a cycle route. Even when I joined the traffic, it wasn't bad. The factories and office blocks had roses outside. This road, now the A5194, used to be the A6 coming in...