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Part 1 (West Bridgford to Cropwell Bishop - 13km)

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Part 1 (West Bridgford to Cropwell Bishop - 13km)

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Part 1 of the Grantham Canal walk starts in West Bridgford, at the River Trent near the Nottingham Forest football ground. https://www.nottinghamforest.co.uk/

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The canal swiftly departs the busy area of the town and runs into the trees, across from the gardens on the canal with their homemade jetties. The path is in very good condition, definitely dog friendly and great for bikes. Unfortunately there are no cafés on the path but there is a huge variety of places in West Bridgford to eat. Here you can find swan and other water birds.

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Once you arrive in Gamston, you will find Morrisons and The Goose pub https://www.greeneking-pubs.co.uk/pubs/nottinghamshire/goose/. You then have to cross the A52 and head towards Bassingfield along the dog-friendly path, watching the aeroplanes land on the nearby Nottingham Airport. The views here are fantastic and the water sparkles in the sunlight.

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Once you near Cotgrave, there is a little less water and in a dry summer it might disappear in some places. Also, there is great scenery, a quiet cottage with a stream and a lock. Here you can find swans and many other water birds. These two locks have been recently restored. Soon you approach Cotgrave Country Park where you could sit and have a picnic.

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There are many places to eat in Cotgrave, from pubs to sandwich shops. Some great examples are Grannies and Tea For Two. Also, there are a couple of pubs if you fancy a longer meal. http://www.roseandcrowncotgrave.co.uk/ and The Manvers Arms have great reviews. After you leave Cotgrave you head into the fields again, approaching Cropwell Bishop, where the canal completely dries out. The locks here have been abandoned but it is interesting to see how they would've worked. You will not see another lock for 20 miles near Muston

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At Cropwell Bishop the canal is just some overgrown plants in a ditch but the path remains in good condition. If you cut away from the canal down a farm track towards a fishing pond, you can see wonderful views of the sun setting over the fields. In Cropwell Bishop (famous for Stilton Cheese there are 2 pubs and a sandwich shop on Nottingham Road and Church Street.

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As you steer away from Cropwell Bishop, you pass The Old Mill. It was originally used to process gypsum and there is a distinct widening where the wharves would have been. The canal starts to gather some water again. There are lots of swans at this part of the canal along with places for fishing. You pass near the small village of Owthorpe with fantastic views of the Cropwell Wolds, going on towards Kinoulton.

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You pass Devil's Elbow, which is the sharpest turn in the whole canal, looking on towards Kinoulton and the Vale of Belvoir. You pass through the west side of Kinoulton close to the church. In Kinoulton, which has a population of 1,050, there is a pub called The Nevile Arms.

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Shortly after, you will arrive at Hickling. Hickling has a basin surrounded by picnic benches and the pleasant sight of swans swimming in the water. It is here that you can stop off either at the cafe of the pub if you would like a larger meal. This part of the canal is perfect for walking with dogs and cycling.

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Possibly one of the best sections of the canal in terms of clear, open water, the canal leaves Hickling and moves towards Hose and Harby. You will cross the River Smite, a tributary of the River Devon, which marks the border of Nottinghamshire and Leicestershire. It is the last time you will be in Nottinghamshire whilst walking the canal. You will reach the road close to Hose where there are parking spaces and picnic benches. Hose boasts 2 churches, a pub, the Rose and Crown https://whatpub.com/pubs/BEV/034/rose-crown-hose, and a couple of shops despite being a village of 500 people.

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As soon as you leave Hose, you reach the half way point of the canal, exactly 26km (16.5 miles) from both West Bridgford and Grantham. A trip to Harby is only 1/4 of a mile. The Nags Head pub in the village has been an inn for 200 years and parts of it date from the 1300s when the building was a monks’ dormitory. http://www.nagsheadharby.com/menus/

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The canal here offers stunning views over the vale. The towpath is now grass, so perhaps not as good for cycling. Soon you will cross under the dismantled railway. If you look carefully under the bridge, you will notice an old poem from the 1879 Melton to Bingham line

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Plungar is only a short walk away from the towpath. Plungar's church, St Helen's, was built in 1240 and it has a lot of history. It has a lot of animal symbolism. There are medieval animal heads on the choir stalls but the most unusual figures are on the outside west wall of the tower. They tell `The Tale of Reynard the Fox’, well known in medieval times and believed to have originated in France.

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The old railway track runs almost parallel to the path. For a while, you can see the church spire at Barkestone-le-Vale. The towpath at this point is perfect for walking , cycling and dogs. Although the land you are walking on is flat, the surroundings offer fantastic views of the Vale of Belvoir.

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Around about now, Belvoir Castle Starts to emerge in the distance. Redmile is a quiet village of just over 900 people tucked away in the heart of the Vale. It has a pub for anyone after a long rest called the Windmill Inn https://www.thewindmillinnredmile.co.uk/. The canal travels north-east of Redmile and extends north, close to the A52 and the village of Bottesford.

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Just before you reach Woolsthorpe, you enter the 3rd and final county on the walk, Lincolnshire. This section is the best part of the canal. It gives you a feeling of what it used to be like. The canal itself is very well kept with functioning locks that you can get boats through. To the side there are sculptures to look at and if you fancy a rest there is a cafe and a pub. This is the perfect place for a peaceful day out.

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The towpath is surfaced all the way to Grantham meaning it is perfect for dogs and bikes. You pass close to Denton reservoir which is just a short walk from the canal. There is a brilliant circular walk around it is you feel like it.