NORTHANTS - JULY 2023 Irthlingborough Church to Rushden Lakes and back

 Monday 17th July 2023.

With Maureen and Norma. We drove to Irthlingborough, parked near church, and walked via the  Greenway to Rushden Lakes in time for coffee at Bewi*ched.  

We saw swans, a few ducks, a moorhen, dragonflies, damselflies, plus butterflies - meadow browns, red admirals, whites and one comma. 

There were a number of plants and the blackberries are looking promising, so long as they get enough sun and rain.

A 5.4 miles saunter…with a very long coffee stop in the warm sun.

Irthlingborough, Rushden Lakes, Rushden, Higham Ferrers.

With Norma and Maureen. About 7 miles. Sunny, though there was still a wind. We parked in Church Street car park.


The Greenway path between Irthlingborough and Higham was posted as flooded, but in fact the water has gone down, though there was evidence of past flooding on the path.



Coffee at Rushden Lakes was far too tempting to resist, and it was warm and sheltered enough for us to sit outside.


From there we walked all the way back without another break.


Lunch in the cafe@25 in Irthlingborough. Though they were suffering from a power cut they were able to offer us tea or coffee and a sandwich.

Irthlingborough again

Wednesday 08 January with Marta. The same route as on Monday, about 7 miles with a diversion for coffee in the shopping centre.

Another view of Irthlingborough church


The ground near the river is pretty wet


Sculptures at Rushden Lakes




The tunnel under the road on the Greenway,

Rushden's famous son, H E Bates and some of his best known books - My Uncle Silas, Love for Lydia, The Darling Buds of May, and Fair Stood the Wind for France.






One of the signs on the old station


A plaque outside the cafe in Higham Ferrers where we had lunch - the HE Bates connection again
 
and Chichele College




and blue plaques in Higham Ferrers

Irthlingborough, Rushden, Higham Ferrers

Monday 06 January 2020. With Eddie and Maureen.  Six and a half miles.

Another route chosen to avoid muddy fields, though there was some water early on. But feet stayed dry, so all was well.

From Irthlingborough Church Street car park, then through the churchyard to St Peters Way, where we turned left and on to the Greenway at the bend.
We walked downhill to a broken signpost, and turned right - this part of the path was soggy, but we followed the path round until it joined the disused railway track. We turned towards Rushden Lakes shopping centre, and after a little over 2 miles in all we were there. 

No wandering around it today, so we made straight for the footbridge to cross the A45. we walked along Crown Way,  leaving t he Morrisons depot on our left, and turning right then left along the Greenway. we followed this cycle and walking route past Asda, then past the Railway Museum, and on to the school and Queensway. We turned left here and continued to Higham Ferrers High Street. 
A right turn took us to a tempting Bewi*ched cafe. Just outside was evidence of a very old style petrol pump.


After coffee we arrived on, along the High Street as far as Cemetery Lane. We turned left then right at Saffron Road, which took us on to another section of the Greenway. We crossed the A45 by a footbridge, and then the Nene, 
before following our noses back up to Irthlingborough church once more.

Irthlingborough, Rushden Lakes, Higham Ferrers

Monday 18 March 2019, with Norma, Kate and Eddie. A pleasant day with less wind than of late. 7.8 miles in all.  The day we went to Higham by way of Ebbw Vale! (Apologies to GK Chesterton.)

More urban than our usual walks, but using the Greenway, a path and cycle track currently running between Rushden and Irthlingborough, but planned to run all the way to Peterbrough.

We parked in Irthlingborough near St Peter's Church, and walked through the churchyard, where the view down to the Nene valley was clear today, through the bare trees.

We turned left along St Peter's Way to join the Greenway path near the junction with Meadow Way. We followed the path downhill until we reached a signpost to Ebbw Vale (!) - the name of part of the town. Here we turned right along a grassy path. After almost a mile we reached a junction with the disused railway track, and decided to turn right again towards the new shopping development at Rushden Lakes, where there is also a WT Centre (Wildlife Trusts). 
We weren't tempted into the shops, but there are public toilets and coffee shops. We almost went for the coffee, then decided to leave that for Higham Ferrers.
The next section hadn't been preplanned... we crossed the huge white pedestrian bridge then walked through a newish business estate area. As we were unsure whether there was a pedestrian route, we asked people. They showed us the Greenway route, which took us which took us to the south of Higham for almost two miles, along a pleasant mostly traffic free route. We had a little road walking, past the Transport Museum.

Almost sunny!

When we reached the Ferrers School, we turned left and into the High Street. By now coffee was definitely needed, and as it was close to lunchtime we had sandwiches as well. The Griffin Inn was a congenial spot for a break.

From the pub we took Hind Stile and the High Street again as far as Cemetery Lane. We turned left then right along Saffron Road, which eventually becomes the Greenway once more. This took us over the A45 on a footbridge, and we followed this path directly back to Irthlingborough, rejoining our original route at the Ebbw Vale signpost.

Stanwick and Irthlingborough Lakes

A walk with Marta in much more inviting conditions than yesterday, though we managed to find some mud . . . at one point we turned back, as it was quite slippery.

Making our way into the Visitor Centre for a quick coffee and teacake to fortify us after the long tiring drive . . . of 30 minutes . . . we saw a flock of birds. I think they were lapwings, as the sun caught white flashes as they turned. I should have switched the phone camera to video mode.  A grand sight anyway.

Bridges of all kinds make great reflections.

This heron hung around for some time - the photo is cropped a lot.

More reflections

Quick shot as the heron flies a short distance

Higham Ferrers Lock on the Nene

Lots of swans on the lakes

Marta making her way through the mud wallow

There were small strips of ice in the water - I was surprised, as it didn't feel so cold.

Irthlingborough church on the hill above the river and lakes.

After a leisurely five miles or so, we returned to the Visitor Centre for a bowl of soup before returning home.