Trent Valley: Twyford, both ways

To complete my loop along the Dove Valley from the mouth at Newton Solney up to Dovedale at Thorpe, across to Matlock on the Limestone Way, and back south along the Derwent Valley, I needed to walk one last section along the River Trent from Derwent Mouth to Repton. Originally I planned to do it in that direction. But for various reasons I ended up doing it the other way. The walk from Repton to Ingleby was completed weeks ago, at the beginning of June, and, for the sake of completeness, I also, later, walked from Findern to Twyford, on the other bank of the river. If I had done the walk sixty years or more ago, I could have crossed the river by ford or ferry at Twyford, and that would have been my most direct route home.

the Trent at Twyford

Walk 1: Repton to Ingleby

Starting from the centre of Repton, I made my way out of the village and crossed the fields to Milton.

Wystan Arboretum

Milton

The Trent Rivers Trust has been busy establishing the Trent Valley Way. This section was only signposted a couple of years ago, and I was roughly following the route of the Repton circular route. I wasn't surprised, therefore, to spot a waymarker on a footbridge outside Milton.

I crossed a few more fields and reached St Saviour's Church at Foremark. I've passed this church several times, but somehow I'd never tried to go inside. Well. I really should have. Look at that roof - it's amazing!

Considerably encouraged by that beautiful church on what I thought was going to be a boring walk, I set off for my next objective - Anchor Church cave. There's a glimpse of Foremark Hall across the fields. It's now Repton Prep School.

A new information board by the cave told me some of its history. This place feels like it should be special, but it is marred by graffiti and rubbish - and, I noticed, an eyesore of a new bridge. The specialness seems to have ebbed away.

Past the cave, the footpath is practically in the river. Not the main stream of the Trent, but a backwater. Still, I have been here before when you definitely couldn't get through without wellies.

The path then climbs up onto a bluff. It was great to get a view. I stopped to eat an apple, and the Merlin app was picking up the songs of half a dozen different birds.

My turn-around point was a gate by Sycamore Farm. I touched the gate and came back along the same path. This time I avoided the watery path and took a higher route along the edge of a field, which dropped steeply down back to Anchor Church.

Someone had put in a new gravelled path - presumably as part of the Trent Valley Way, as it didn't follow the footpath line on the map. It brought me out to a lane, where I had to do a bit of deductive work to decide that I should be heading across a rough weedy field. Once I started heading towards the pylon, the path became more obvious.

Then there were fields and fields of sheep. Twyford came into view across the river - a white-painted hall and a cluster of brick farmhouses. This was the old ferry and fording point.

After a while I spotted the needle-thin spire of Repton church. Nearly there now. As I followed a track back to the village, I noticed a creature which I thought was a bird. Then it moved, and I realised that what I had taken to be a bird's neck was actually black-tipped ears - it was a hare! I watched as it loped away.

Soon I was back in Repton, admiring some of the buildings as I walked past. Repton School is dispersed throughout the village, with the art department next to the post office, and halls of residence tucked behind cottages. It's a funny arrangement, but it seems to work.

9 June 2025

8.7 miles / 14 km

Walk 2: Findern to Twyford

Twyford is a nice little place, so it's a shame there aren't better ways to walk there. Any attempt ends up on busy roads with no pavements. I set out on a Saturday morning, hoping that it would be relatively quiet.

From Findern, I crossed the A50 bridge and then went past Lagan Indian restaurant and over the canal and railway to the primary school. All very familiar territory; I have been walking this route for over a decade now, but Theo has just finished Year 6 and is off to secondary school!

Past the school, the pavement ran out. There was a short stretch on the road before I got to a footpath. I have driven past this gate hundreds of times, but never walked along the path before. Would it be passable? It looked hopeful.

I crossed a few fields of horses easily enough. Then a woman with a barrow of manure hailed me, and told me that someone else had bought the next piece of land. She warned me that the path might not be easy to find.

is that a path?

It was certainly more overgrown, but I got through. I went round the edge of a field of wheat and maize. Then I came out on the main road between Swarkestone and Willington.

Again, there was no pavement, but I could already see the next footpath. I had imagined that this one would be a struggle through overgrown bushes. It turned out to be a nicely mown grassy strip along the front of a farmhouse. Very civilised.

Twyford consists of about five farmhouses, a hall, and a church. It regularly floods. The wooden post for the chain ferry is still there, but the ferry ceased operating in the 1960s.

The church is a mish-mash of different styles and materials. Not many churches around here have bricks in their construction. Apparently it's never been flooded, despite being so close to the Trent, but it has suffered from fire damage a few times.

A footpath across the field behind the church took me back to the main road. The turning to Twyford is marked as "Ferry Lane".

I followed the road opposite Ferry Lane over to the Trent & Mersey Canal. There was a fairly steady stream of traffic, so I frequently had to stand in the hedge to keep out of the way. For some reason I had expected to reach the canal at Arleston Bridge, so I was surprised to find myself at Stenson Lock.