Martyn's Blog

Welcome to the first travel blog post of 2022. Today, Monday 17th January 2022, I had a walk around the Brizlincote Nature Walk, a circular walking route in the Brizlincote valley in Burton on Trent.

The nature trail was created in 2018, although most of the paths already existed before then. Information boards and signposts were installed, and the area was cleared up at a cost of £12,000 in the spring of 2018. The four and a half mile route takes in part of Stapenhill Woodlands, and runs through the Brizlincote Valley housing estate, past Winshill Water Tower and past Stapenhill Cemetery.

I joined the trail near the Co-op supermarket on St Peter’s Street in Stapenhill. A couple of alleyways on some nearby residential streets lead to the nature trail path.

This part of the trail ends at Violet Way, so I had to walk down the road, cross over and find the entrance to the next part of the trail just off Grafton Road. I found it with no problems, but it was a lot muddier than I had anticipated. Luckily, for once I was wearing appropriate footwear.

In the brief moments that I was able to have a look around while I was trying not to fall into the mud, I saw some cows in a field, and also caught a glimpse of Brizlincote Hall, a large manor house which has stood there for over 300 years. The pathway around the field is not as muddy as the field itself looks, and it is separated by an electric fence. I didn’t test it to see if it worked.

At the east end of the trail, the path diverges, with one pathway leading to a wildflower meadow, and the other leading up to Winshill Water Tower and Waterloo Clump. Perhaps one day I will follow the other path (when it’s not as muddy), but I headed through the gate and back towards more solid ground.

I then headed up the hill towards Winshill Water Tower, an old water tower built to improve water pressure for residents in Winshill, but which now serves as a site for communications masts.

From there, it was downhill all the way to Elms Road in Stapenhill, with yet more mud to contend with. The views over Burton from near the water tower are amazing, though.

It was a good walk, in spite of the mud. Maybe one day I will do it again the other way around. If you were thinking of doing this walk, and you want a map, you can find one at the Brizlincote Parish Council website.

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