Wednesday 5th October

Billingborough to Ropsley - 12 miles

After yesterdays yomp, we decided to cut down the mileage a bit, so headed for Ropsley. The route doesn't actually go into the village centre, but its well worth the visit and it afforded easy roadside parking.

From Billingborough you have a mainly off road route heading out to Sempringham Abbey Church. Here we found the memorial to Princess Gwenllian, last heir to the Welsh Crown. imprisoned there by the English monarch to stave off claims to the throne!

Continuing across country, you head towards Beacon Hill (yes, hill) before dropping into Folkington by the House of Correction (the 19th Century prison).

Folkington is another lovely village with a wide village green complete with handy bench! Fortified at the busy coffee shop, (whose lunches smelt terrific) we headed cross country again  before dropping into Pickworth. This time we stopped at the church and went in to see the medieval wall paintings revealed after bomb disturbance during World War II.

From Pickworth, footpaths take you to Sapperton then on to Humby before a final lane walk into Ropsley. Whether it was the reduced mileage , a more familiar type of landscape, less road/lane walking or simply that we had hit our stride, we all agreed that it had been a much more pleasurable days walking!