Woodhall Spa

Woodhall Spa 21st November 2021

For those not wanting to return after sunset, an assisted ride to Woodhall Spa from Horncastle had been arranged.

All was set for the coldest day of the season so far accompanied by a strong, northerly wind and a scattering of showers. Apologies had been sent by Chris Owen, John Ambler, Ian Prince and Neil Parnham whilst joining today’s Ride Leader Tim Newbery and the Fitness Suite at Horncastle were John Rickett, Rob Cook, Alan Hockham and Reg Bagshaw.

Today’s route would take us initially to Langton Hill (never easy to start with a climb) and along the rural lanes to Old Woodhall. Luckily the skies were largely clear and the sun was beaming down, at times a little dazzling reflecting off the wet roads. Reg opted for a shortened route whilst the remainder would continue along Monument Road to view the acclaimed ‘Wellington Monument’.

Erected in 1844 by Colonel Richard Elmhurst, a plaque on the base records that the adjacent Waterloo Wood was planted "from Acorns Sown Immediately After the Memorable Battle of Waterloo".

Obligatory photos having been taken, time to continue to Stixwould where Station Road would lead us to the ‘Water Rail Way’ alongside the River Witham. We had just missed the train by 21 years, one month and 12 days! Stixwould was part of Great Northern Railways’ ‘Lincolnshire Loop Line’ which ran from Lincoln to Peterborough via Spalding and Boston. The line having been repurposed into a multi user path is now an attractive way to cycle to Woodhall Spa with fine art sculptures to view enroute. The Lincoln Longwool Sheep by Sally Matthews brought a smile to our faces.

The Water Rail Way would take us to Martin Dales where we would leave the cycle trail to continue onto Woodhall Spa and take refreshments at Woodlands Café. It was here that today’s Ride Leader would be helped out by the banking facilities of both Mr Rickett and Mr Cook as Tim had neglected to take his wallet! Many thanks Rob and John, the coffee and scone were lovely.

Sitting outside in the sunshine was fine for a time but after about 20-30 minutes the chill was setting in and a decision was made to continue our journey, amazingly still with clear blue skies.

Leafy Kirkby Lane took us through thick woodland before emerging in the Bain Valley and to the canalised River Bain. We could have taken a short cut here but in the end, it would be a pleasant ride through Wood Enderby, Claxby Pluckacre and the gated road to Miminngsby. Along the route we had been given fine views of birds of prey and Rob had mentioned having had some close-up views of Buzzard. The gated road passes through farmland which is part of the Revesby Estate and we did indeed have to navigate our way through a herd of cattle. Interesting too in that John had spotted some earthworks by Hall Farm which might have been evidence of the Deserted Medieval Village of Claxby Pluckacre.

Cloud was finally building with showers spotted in the distance, brilliant rainbows making a fine backdrop. Never the less it was time to dig in and tackle a headwind and an ascent up Hameringham Hill and Mareham Hill. Our rewards were fine views of the Bain Valley before our descent to Thornton Lock.

The ‘Spa Trail’ (the former Horncastle to Woodhall Spa Railway) would take us past several locks of the Horncastle Canal. Sir Joseph Banks, whose family owned estates at Reevesby, was the driving force behind the building of the canal which was opened to much acclaim. Before the canal was built the roads and tracks to Horncatle were described as ‘impassable’ in the winter.

The opening of the canal on 17th September 1802 was declared a public holiday so that the townsfolk could celebrate in style with a ‘festive’ repast held in the Greyhound Inn with free food and beer!

We would return to the Fitness Suite at about 1.30 pm having covered 29 miles. A chilly but very pleasant ride in the sunshine along lanes which we haven’t used for a while and some were a first for John. Many thanks to all for the company.