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At the bend, turn right, down the side of a house, into a field. The footpath splits into two, take the RIGHT fork. Follow this path to the field boundary, and walk right along the boundary, keeping it to the left, through the gap into the next field, and walk round to the left, over the footbridge. After the bridge, turn left. Keep on the footpath into Measham.

At the end of the path, cross straight over into Bosworth Road, and walk along the road, past the Cemetery. Take the footpath on the right, across to Measham Lodge. When the footpath reaches the road, turn right, then take the footpath off to the left.

Walk along this footpath until you reach the brook. Here, turn left, and walk up to the road. Turn right, cross over the bridge, and walk along he road, past Quarry Lane, to the footpath shortly AFTER Valley House Farm. Walk along the footpath, until you reach the road. Leave the path here and walk along the road.

At the end of the road, cross over and continue straight on down the track. Take the second (tree lined) footpath on the left, coming out alongside a cottage. Turn right onto the road, ad walk down into the village of Heather

AT THIS POINT, WE RECOMMEND YOU STOP FOR LUNCH. THERE ARE TWO PUBS IN THE VILLAGE. IF YOU PREFER A PICNIC LUNCH, CARRY ON HERE, THERE IS A PICNIC SITE ABOUT A MILE ON!

In the village, turn left, and then turn right at the crossroads (towards Ibstock). Take the footpath on the left into the Forest Park, and keep to the left of the first lake. This is the best point to stop for a picnic.*

Continue walking through the park, along the same footpath. This eventually leaves the forest park, and joins a track. Turn left onto the track, until you reach Ravenstone Road. Turn left onto the road. At the footpath sign, turn right. Walk to the right of the hedge, across the field and continue along the footpath, until you reach the road. Take the footpath in between the two forks of the road, which comes out next to the church. Cross over, and continue along the path, turning right after the field boundary, and then left at the next boundary. Continue along this path, crossing over Red Burrow Lane, and walking into the village of Packington.

At the road in packington, turn left. Ignore the junction to the right. The second junction, near the church, has a footpath sign on the corner. Go over the stile, and walk diagonally across the field, up the embankment. Continue along the footpath to the A42 Junction.

At the junction, cross over the A42 sliproad, then cross over the road that goes under the bridge. Walk under the bridge, and cross the next slip road. Go along the footpath, which crosses the golf course, eventually bringing you out onto Willesley Woodside - the start of your walk.

Author's Comment

A very long walk... much improved by a pub lunch at Heather! You will definately need a map for this walk, and walking boots are really advised. You can cut a couple of miles off the walk by walking along the road from Heather to Normanton rather than going through the Sence Valley Forest Park.

Allow a full day for this walk! It is long, but the terrain isn't too bad. I did the walk during April, during the long dry spell, so I don't know how muddy it can get. There was some trouble with a fence at Measham Lodge - you may be able to turn left down the track and right onto the road to avoid this. I did the walk with a group of 12 scouts (well, 6 at first but the the group I was supervising caught up with the other group a couple of miles in). They found it quite tiring, but still managed to cook dinner when they got back to camp at Willesley.

Please park considerately at Willesley. Coach and Minibus access is required to the campsite, so please park further up Willesley Woodside than the entrance. Under no circumstances should you park in the private access drive to the campsite. This is quite an isolated road, so ensure that you securely lock your car, and take any valuables with you. A safer alternative may be to begin the walk elsewhere on the route.

Finally... Resist the temptation to go into every pub you pass (I didn't have this problem with a group of scouts)!

Please contact me if you have any queries or comments about this walk!

* - if you require the toilet at this point, walk through the park, past the main lake, and over the bridge. Wak through the lower car park and Climb steeply up hill to the building visible on the hill top. From here, walk along the hill top along the track, until you reach a junction. Here, turn left along the track, and walk down hill, rejoining the original route at SK 400 118.