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Walk No 08 – Via the Old Hall and round to Mount Pleasant Lane

Length of Walk: Approx 3.2 Miles

Starting in Netherseal, this walk take you out into the local countryside via footpaths that run through fields, some woodland and alongside a lake. There are a number of stiles and wicket gates on the route. Note: If you are walking with a dog, there are two stiles that are not dog friendly. You will need to lift your dog over the fence.

1.

Leave the village along Church Street. You will see St Peter’s Church on your left. Continue past the church on your left and the alms houses on the right. Note the date and inscription on the alms houses.

2.

Continue out of the village past all the houses as if you are heading towards the A444 and the Crickets Inn. Go past the metal railings on your right and over the small bridge across a stream.

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3.

Ignore the footpath sign on your right and continue until you see a gate, stile and footpath sign on your left, cross the road and go over the stile.

4.

Climb the stile and continue forward, with the hedge on your left. You might see a few Pheasants along this stretch of the footpath, especially in the early morning.

In February/March you can see a carpet of Snowdrops in the woodland on your left.

5.

You will come to a second stile, climb over this and continue walking until you get to a junction of footpaths. To your left are some steps and a wooden gate. This footpath takes you back to Church Street alongside the Old Hall.

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6.

Turn to your right and take the well-marked footpath straight across the field, towards a clump of trees in the distance. Listen carefully as you walk, you may hear a Woodpecker in the trees around here.

7.

Continue along the footpath, past the trees and the barn on the right, until you come to a metal gate by the road. Cross the road (Gorsey Lane) and into the field opposite by the second gate.

8.

Once in the field, turn to the right and follow the hedge up towards the trees that are Jenny’s Wood. Turn left at the trees and go through the gap in the hedge. Note: OS Maps show the footpath straight across the field, but it seems standard practise to walk the edge of the field instead.

9.

Follow the footpath alongside Jenny’s Wood and past the ruins of what was once Mount Pleasant Barn. Continue to the end of Jenny’s Wood to open field.

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10.

Continue almost diagonally across the field toward the trees in the hedgerow in front of you. As you get closer you will see an old tree swing and rope ladder in the biggest tree.

11.

Once you get to the tree with the rope ladder, turn right and follow the footpath between the two hedges. Note: if you want to cut short your walk, you can turn left here and follow the grassy path down to Mount Pleasant Lane and back on to Gorsey Lane. If you turn right at the bottom of the lane, it will take you back into the village.

12.

Follow the footpath between the two hedges until you come to an old stile. Go over the stile and follow the footpath along the hedgerow to your left.

Note: The footpath along this part of the route is not clearly defined and can be somewhat uneven under foot.

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13.

You will come across a small wooden fence, almost hidden amongst the trees in the corner of the field. Go through this gate. Note: If you have a dog with you, please ensure that it is on a lead. There are often sheep in the next couple of fields.

14.

Continue along the edge of the field until you get to a pair of wooden gates. Please make sure you latch the gates as you go through.

15.

There is a wooden plank between the two gates that crosses a small gulley, so access is slightly restricted.

16.

Once across the plank and through the second gate, continue along the footpath with the hedge on your left, until you get to a wooden platform. Go over the fence and continue into the next field. Note: Dogs must be on a lead, there may be sheep in the field and there is often an electric fence on the right of the footpath.

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17.

Cross the field with the hedge on your left until you come to the next stile. The fence has wire mesh across it so there is no access for dogs to get through. As per Page 1, you will need to lift your dog over the fence. Dogs must be on a lead – there may be sheep in the field.

18.

Continue with the hedge to your left, until you come to the next stile. Once again, as per Page 1, the stile is not accessible for dogs. You will need to lift your dog over.

19.

Follow the footpath between the hedge and the fence. You will come to a fence with a metal bar. Cross this fence and continue on the footpath into open land with the hedge to your left.

20.

Continue along the footpath across open land past the large tree on your right and towards the next large tree on the left in the hedge.

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21.

After the large tree in the hedge, turn left and follow the footpath, again with the hedge on your left. This will take you towards Cadborough Hill Wood, part of the National Forest. Continue past the sign for Cadborough Hill Wood.

22.

Continue along the footpath and you will come to a gap between two fences. Continue in the same direction towards the horizon.

23.

You will eventually come to a wire fence on your left. Follow the fence until you can see a small bridge in the trees on your right hand side.

24.

At this point you can extend your walk a bit more by climbing Cadborough Hill. Follow the fence all the way to a metal gate on the left. Go through the small gate and follow the fence all the way up the hill. If you do not want to climb Cadborough Hill go to point 25.

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The views from the top of Cadborough Hill are worth the climb!

25.

Cross the bridge and turn to your left. Head towards the hedge in front of you.

26.

Go through the gap in the hedge and head toward Broomfields Lake.

27.

Walk to the lake. There are a couple of benches by the water if you want to sit and take in the views. There are plenty of birds on the lake.

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28.

Continue past the lake, with Broomfields Woods on your right, until you get to a fence and stile. Cross over the stile and continue along the footpath towards the trees by the road. Note: at certain times of the year, there may be a few cows in the field.

29.

At the hedgerow, climb the stile and this brings you out at the roadside. Turn left to head back into Netherseal.