Empingham circular via Rutland Water and Normanton

Thursday 17 November 2016.  7.5 miles.   
This was the same route as we followed in February 2014.  Time flies indeed. Just myself and Gordon.  Today's weather was windy and quite cold. There were plenty of clouds, but we felt no more than a few drops of rain. Autumn colours still in evidence, mainly from oak and beech trees.

We parked near Empingham church, then walked up the road, turned left and crossed the A 606 near the White Horse. We walked down Nook Lane and took the footpath which goes between two houses. 

There were no problems following the route today - all very clear across the fields, through the woodland, and across more grassland to the far end of the dam.

Then we turned left, crossed the dam

and followed the reservoir track round to Normanton car park.  

We paused for a break when we arrived at the tables near Normanton church. 

The weather turned less sunny after this and I took no more photos.
We left Normanton car park and turned left along the main road for a short distance, then turn right along the minor road leading to Ketton.  We passed Oak farm on our left, and after about the same distance again we took a footpath to our left just before Top Cottages, and about a hundred yards before a road junction. The path follows an overgrown and rather tumbledown wall.  It heads more or less north, past Normanton Lodge Farm and Whare Koa on our right. It joins a minor road with views of the reservoir and the dam on our left.  When the road bends to the right, at Normanton Cottages,  a path continues ahead. We kept to the road, following it to a T junction where we turned right.

After climbing gently for about 400 yards we took a path which turns sharp left and heads North. This is part of the Hereward Way. We crossed the A606 and continued north along the Hereward Way,  crossing another path, and emerging on to a small road just past a house.  Mill Farm is nearby, up the hill.

We turned left from the track and made our way over a footbridge and through a couple of fields, one with some placid bullocks, and into Empingham. We walked along Willoughby Drive, parallel to the main road, and found our path which goes alongside the church, emerging as Crocket Lane.