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| Map of the walk |
Well, the weather man reckoned it was going to be an ideal day for walking so, after meeting at Cosby, we set off for Martinshaw Woods car park just outside of Ratby.
There was a slight delay to our start while we waited for everyone to arrive before setting off on our walk to Forest Hill's Golf Club, our coffee stop.
After walking through Martinshaw Woods we crossed the road out of Ratby (Markfield Road) over towards Burrough Woods.
For info: Martinshaw Wood is located 8 km north-west of Leicester, sandwiched between the villages of Groby and Ratby which are close by. Together with Pear Tree Wood and Burroughs Wood, also owned by the Trust, the woods form the south-eastern boundary of the National Forest, and together add up to 158 hectares (390 acres) - the largest continuous area of woodland in Leicestershire and the National Forest. Martinshaw Wood was cut in two by the M1 motorway in 1969, and the two parts are now connected by a bridge crossing the motorway. Grid reference: SK510072
The trees are all dressed down for winter and spring seems a long way off.
Dogwood gives a touch of rustic red to the hedgerows.
For info: Noted for its colourful stems and twigs in winter, Bloodtwig Dogwood 'Midwinter Fire' (Cornus sanguinea) is a hard plant to beat for a colourful show in the winter garden.
At this point in the walk we turned sharp left along towards the golf club.
Crossing the golf course on the waymarked path we kept a watchful eye for golfers, who are usually friendly and helpful when we're walking across the fairway. We noted moles had moved on to the golf course. A common misconception is moles hibernate over winter. They don't. Instead, they mostly remain underground in their complex of burrows, continuing to feed on soil insects.
One of our intrepid photographers decided on a hat fashion show. We leave it to you to comment on the outcome.
Some of us had other committments in the afternoon so, on reaching the golf club there was a quick debate on coffee break or straight back to the cars. Coffee break won of course.
Our break over, we started on the way back.
Out over the car park and past the work men working on extensions at the golf club.
Back across the golf course. It always looks different the other way round.
Then back up through the woods.
All lined up - one for the album.
Wakey, wakey!
On with the walk, through arching branches.
The sun filtering through the trees makes a stunning picture.
All over for another week - see you soon - going to check out the snowdrop situation.
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