Tuesday 16th May 2017 Wymeswold - Diseworth - 13 miles

Tuesday 16th May 2017  Wymeswold - Diseworth - 13 miles


Our final away trip in the East! Our plan was to cover almost 30 miles this trip, to leave roughly 8 miles which we could complete as a day trip. Time always seems pressing and we could only spare 2 nights away.

Anyway the day dawned fair, and we set off to rendezvous at Diseworth to leave one car, before heading back to Wymeswold to start.

After the nightmare of the last trip east, all went relatively smoothly and we met at the Plough Inn in Diseworth. This, very conveniently, was right on our route and was just opening! They were happy to let us park, so after a quick coffee, we set off for the lay-by in Wymesworld.

Wymesworld is lovely but the main A6006 runs right through the centre. You walk right through the village, but soon after leave the main road, initially on lanes and then over fields. The route follows the stream, which at this point marks the boundary with Nottinghamshire and Leicestershire.

As the route meets and crosses the A60, you cross the stream back into Leicestershire. Soon you head away from the stream, uphill, to meet a bridleway which runs along the ridge of Hoton Hills, giving great views,

before dropping down to the lane which takes you into Stanford-on-Soar and back into Nottinghamshire!

From Stanford you follow the River Soar over fields, crossing a railway, and on, to go under another railway line via an old brick tunnel. The route runs parallel to this railway to meet the road running into Normanton-on-Soar. However you soon take a footpath which runs closer to the river and leads through an area of 'holiday huts'.

Chalets would be an exaggeration, but they are obviously used for holidays despite being rather small and simple. There is also a ferry which looks more like a large wooden raft hauled by chain!

A wooden gate takes you across the private garden of a very 'Grand Designs' property and into the churchyard at Normanton-on-Soar

After walking through the village, you head across fields again, to reach Zouch. Here you cross the weir on a maze of bridges back into Leicestershire.

A footpath then leads you to the lane into Hathern, another lovely village. Here we stopped to buy drinks at the Post Office,

before heading on through the village and down a short section of the A6, before crossing into the lane that would take us all the way to Long Whatton and most of the way back to Diseworth. After this longish road section, you take a footpath across fields into Diseworth.

This wasn't easy to spot - it felt like disappearing down a rabbit hole! Luckily the directions proved easy to follow and it wasn't long before we could see the spire of Diseworth church guiding us back into the village and the Plough Inn.

It felt like a long day, but we stopped for a drink at the pub and I think that we gate-crashed a wake! There was obviously something going on, complete with food and an Elvis impersonator, but there were some people obviously upset and some strange floral arrangements, one of which looked just like one you would put on top of a coffin?! I hope our presence didn't offend anyone. We just needed a drink and wanted to give the pub our custom.

Back to Wymeswold and off to our hotel. Very nice. Very welcoming. Once again, no time for the spa, our mileage had been ambitious for a travel day, but a lovely meal and a little drinky or two!