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Day 1 \u2013 When the number 87 bus saves the day<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The Peatlands Way, is a\nrelatively new recreational path around an area not normally associated with\nwalking. I had planned this trek out carefully by using buses and trains and so\non this first day it was merely a case of catching the train from Crowle Railway\nStation where I had parked the car, to Hatfield and Stainforth Railway Station\nand then walking back. The train was on time and I nearly had a free journey as\nthe conductor only reached me as we pulled into Hatfield and Stainforth\nStation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To reach the Peatlands Way it\nwas a walk through this ex mining community which today has little appeal but there\nhas been a settlement here since Anglo Saxon times.<\/p>\n\n\n\n On the northern edge of the\ncommunity I looked for way markers for the Peatlands Way but there were none. I\ncrossed the narrow and busy road bridge over the River Don and struck out north\neastwards along a good riverside embankment with little to note in the flat\ncountryside. I later left the embankment to enter the far more attractive\nvillage of Fishlake. People were out tending public gardens and a host of women\nwere cleaning the church. This as I soon found out was the \u2018Monday Club\u2019 a\ngroup of retired residents who looked after the village. What a good idea I\nthought. I had a wander around the church and entered via the fine Norman south\ndoor. Much of this fine church dates from the 14th<\/sup> and 15th<\/sup>\ncenturies. According to Wikipedia there is a local myth called “The\nCockatrice of Church Street”. The story goes that the mythical beast resides\nnear the Churchyard, and those unlucky enough to hear it\u2019s call are said to\nnever sleep again. Let\u2019s say that after a good day walk I always get a good\nnight sleep and I never heard anything untoward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I returned to the embankment\nand shortly took a path to the left through trees then over a road before\nfollowing a series of enclosed tracks which gradually became overgrown but\nimproved again later. Reaching the next road I found the road bridge over the\nRiver Don closed due to refurbishment and my negotiations with the workmen to\ncross the bridge failed. This was a major blow and after studying the map, my\nonly option was to return to Stainforth which was almost back to where I\nstarted out. I was fuming as I headed back but this time I followed the embankment\nthe whole way despite it not being a right of way. Nearing Stainforth I walked\ncloser to the River Don as this was the true right of way but a route few used.\nI had however at the start of my walk today noted the bus timetables when I set\nout from Stainforth earlier and knew that there were buses every twenty minutes\ntowards Thorne. It was the only sensible thing to do was to catch a bus to\nThorne and pick up the trail again there. From the bus stop timetable, a bus\nwas due anyway and the number 87 whisked me through to Thorne. If I had walked\nthe whole way to Thorne it would have been around twenty three miles of walking\ntoday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Alighting in Thorne I\ncalculated that I was only around an hour behind schedule but I felt a bit like\nJulia Bradbury or Tony Robinson who set out on a walk when they are presenting\na television programme only to \u2018cheat\u2019 by hitching a ride part way through the\nwalk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I now headed through the town\nalong Finkle Street, lined with small shops, and today quite a bustling place.\nBeyond, it was a case of following residential streets before following a path\nacross wasteland full of bramble bushes and tethered gipsy horses on any grassy\nareas. A further downside was the amount of fly tipping in this area. It was lunch\ntime as I reached another ex mining community of Moorends entering via\nBloomhill Road and leaving via Grange Road. This community was quite an unattractive\nplace with many shops boarded up and even vandal bars at places of worship.\nThere were youths hanging around and I really just wanted to get out of the\nplace as soon as possible. Leaving the community I did find a recreation ground\nwith a vandal prove seat which was adjacent to the Thorne Colliery Football\nClub. It wasn\u2019t the best of places to stop for lunch with youths riding mopeds\naround with no helmets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I was keen to set off and\nsoon rounded the abandoned area in which was once Thorne Colliery. Still I had\nno way markers to follow but at least I had marked up the route of the\nPeatlands Way on my Explorer Maps. A reasonable track led out onto Thorne Waste\nor Moors which formed part of the massive Humberhead Peatlands National Nature\nReserve. This area forms the largest lowland peat bog in Britain and I was\nabout to cross it. Now route finding wasn\u2019t going to be too clever but I\nreached the point where there were several information boards. Crikey! This\nplace is full of snakes I thought as I read the details and warnings on the\ninformation boards. Adders and grass snakes were in abundance in this part of\nthe world and there were several signs to remind you. Out came the walking pole\nso that I could prod the ground in front of me if required.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I thankfully came across the\nfirst of several way markers for the Peatlands Way – a symbol of the nightjar\nand these moorlands is one of the best areas in Britain where they can be found\nnot that I saw any.<\/p>\n\n\n\n With eyes peeled to the\nground I set off along a series of paths looking for any movement in the grass.\nThe only trouble was that the grass hadn\u2019t been cut for some time and so it was\nmore than ankle deep. Way-markers were often hidden in wayside vegetation and\nso I stopped several times and estimated how many minutes it was to where I had\nto look for a turn. In places I was walking between tall reeds and half\nexpected to meet Doctor David Livingstone coming the other way. After several\ntwists and turns I eventually came to an straight track which I would follow\neast southeast for around one and quarter miles and I estimated that this would\ntake me around twenty five minutes before looking for a path on my right. The\ncountryside was very flat and full of lakes and bogs and the only sign of the\nmodern day world was a distant chimney of a power station and the top of\ndistant wind turbines. Time to get moving I thought so I upped my pace and less\nscanning the ground ahead of me as I was now on a clear track. After a quarter\nof a mile I stopped dead in my tracks as I was about to tread on a fully grown\nadder. I carefully backed off and got my camera from my rucksack before\ncreeping up on the reptile to get some close up photographs before it slithered\naway into the undergrowth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For the next few miles I paid\nmore attention on what was on the path ahead of me as again the path made\nseveral turns. Timing the points to look for a turning was paramount as missing\na turning on this sort of terrain would have been time consuming. I was always glad\nwhen I found a way marker. I was still on the correct route when I came across\nan information board which routed the Peatlands Way a completely different way\nto how I had marked it up. I decided to ignore it as the path looked more\novergrown. It was almost late afternoon as I emerged from the \u2018jungle\u2019 and\nsomehow relieved to be walking on a surfaced lane towards Crowle. Reaching the\nvillage, I didn\u2019t really have the appetite to explore the place. My feet were\nbeginning to get tired and this part of the village didn\u2019t have much appeal.\nThe area does lie on slightly higher ground being at the northern end of the\nIsle of Axholme with Crowle Hill rising to a staggering twenty metres. By\nViolet Hill Farm I took a track south crossing mildly undulating countryside\nand reaching the next village of Ealand, I joined the village street to get\nback to the car.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So I had completed the first day and thankfully the bus number 87 had saved an otherwise very long walk. As for the Peatlands Way, the way marking had been virtually nonexistent and it had run through some very unattractive areas. Crossing the Thorne Waste had it own interest and would have suited someone far more who had a keen interest in ornithology. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Day 2 Crossing the Isle of Axholme<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n For this second walk along\nthe Peatland\u2019s Way I wanted a nice day as it crossed slightly higher ground\nover the Isle of Axholme and passed through more interesting villages. I drove\ninto Scunthorpe then walked to the bus station and with plenty of time to spare\nI had time to walk around the shops before catching bus 399 to Haxey. There\nwere very few passengers for the journey and I alighted in the village centre.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Haxey is quite a fascinating\nplace and I made my way towards the village church pausing on the way to study\nan information board. A great fire in the village on the 28th-29th February\n1744 which started in a flax manufactory destroyed sixty two houses. Further up\nthe village I stopped to look at the fine St Nicholas\u2019s Church which is a Grade\nI listed building dating from the 12th and 13th centuries. The building has\nbeen described as \u2018The Cathedral of the Isle\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Turning right I now followed\na minor lane to the edge of Upperthorpe and here turned right on a path running\nnorth. Sadly deliberate attempts had been made to block this path with garden\nrubbish and dog waste. It was most unpleasant and a little beyond, a maize crop\nhad been planted at right angles to the path and there was simply no way\nthrough. I forced my way around two sides of a field to reach the Peatland\u2019s\nWay. This was certainly a poor start.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I was now on the Peatland\u2019s\nWay and despite it now being a good path, there were no \u2018Peatland Way\u2019 signs\nagain. I crossed a road at Coney Garth and skirted around to the northern edge\nof Haxey before joining the road east to reach the A161.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What now followed was some\nfine walking on good field paths with wide views all the way to Epworth. The\ncountryside here was marginally higher than the surrounding area and it made\nfor some very pleasant walking in the warm sunshine but shower clouds were\naround. One such shower was well to the southwest but heading my way and was developing.\nIn excellent light for photography I stopped several times for photographs as I\nneared Epworth and passed the remains of Thompson\u2019s Flour Mill as I entered the\nvillage. From my map the route of the Peatland\u2019s Way avoided the village centre\nwhich was a pity as Epworth in my opinion is the most interesting village on\nthe whole trail. I therefore opted to divert and turned left passing the Old\nRectory which is now a museum. This was the home of Samuel Wesley who with his\nwife had nineteen children one of which – John Wesley was one of the founders\nof the Methodist Church. I continued through the village then up to the St\nAndrew\u2019s Parish Church which unfortunately was locked. The churchyard contains\nthe grave of Samuel Wesley. On the north side of the church I found a suitable\nplace to sit for lunch but rain clouds were bearing down and through the trees\nthat surrounded the churchyard, the countryside to the north had misted away under\na veil of rain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After lunch, and keeping an\neye on the heavy clouds around I decided to continue north but the next part of\nthe walk was very much through open countryside with no shelter should the\nheavens open. After following an open field track, I crossed the A161 by Brooks\nMill which dates from 1812 and made my way to Maw\u2019s Mill, which dates from\n1783. Both mills had been restored but are minus their sails. To rejoin my\nroute I skirted around the edge of a wheat field then descended to join the\ntrack bed of an old railway which had been converted into a path cum cycleway.\nThis was once the Axholme Joint Railway which ran between Goole and Haxey. I\nstayed with the railway path up to and through Belton which passed a visitor\ncentre on the way. The visitor centre was merely a cafe with information boards\nand nothing in the way of local literature to pick up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I did have thoughts of\nvisiting the church at Belton but the link path from the railway was full of\nnettles and impassable. <\/p>\n\n\n\n With a bit of a push I would\ntime it just right for the 15.07pm train from Crowle to <\/p>\n\n\n\n Scunthorpe and as the service\nwas hourly, I didn\u2019t fancy spending an hour on Crowle Station even if it was a\nfine afternoon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A good track ran northeast\nfrom Belton and later I continued via an accommodation bridge <\/p>\n\n\n\n over the M180 motorway then\ndoubled back along the northern side of the motorway. Heading north on a grassy track I got caught\non the tail end of a shower and by Temple Drain I opted to shelter under some\ntrees rather than donning waterproofs. I continued alongside Folly Drain before\npassing beneath an old railway viaduct then west along a wide track between two\ndrainage channels. The rain suddenly came on again but with limited time I just\npressed on. Reaching the A161 I had no choice but to follow this busy road\nnorth. It was a very unpleasant half mile and having to leap up onto grassy\nbanks every time a vehicle sped past. This road was also frequented with much\nheavy traffic and I was glad to get over the A18. At least on the far side\nthere was a path which was initially well away from the road. I next crossed\nCrowle Bridge which spanned the Sheffield and South Yorkshire Navigation and\nthe railway before turning right on the road leading around to Crowle Station.\nIf I had done my research, I could have caught a Scunthorpe bound bus here as\none came by as I neared the station.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At the station I still had a\nfew minutes to spare and anyway, the train was running a few minutes late. I\nwas the only person to board and the conductor never even bothered to come and\ntake my fare.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So summing up day two I felt that this part of the Peatland\u2019s Way which crosses the Isle of Axholme is in many respects the most interesting part of the trail but the bit at the end on the A161 is very unpleasant. The weather had given some good opportunities for photography.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Day 3 Filling the gap<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n This was my third and last\nwalk along the Peatland\u2019s Way and today I set off to drive to Haxey. As it was\nschool holiday time, I parked the car in the primary school lay-by and walked\ndown through the village to the bus stop by the Co-op. I was in good time and\nthe number 291 bus arrived on schedule. En route to Doncaster we picked up many\npassengers so that the bus was almost full. At the large underground bus\nstation in the Frenchgate Shopping Centre in Doncaster, I just missed my bus\nconnection by seconds but the number 87A would be along in ten minutes. Catching\nthis, I alighted in Stainforth and set out east along Thorne Road and Kirton\nLane. From my observations a couple of days earlier from the bus, I noted a signed\npath leading off over an old spoil heap. The Peatland\u2019s Way however was marked\non the map detouring around this area and\nwould have added an unpleasant mile of road walking then along a muddy track.<\/p>\n\n\n\n East of Stainforth I decided\nto leave the road and take the path south which climbed steeply over disused mine\nspoil workings. First of all I had to cross a ditch which had been made to stop\nscrambler bikes from accessing the area. A steep but short ascent followed onto\na level area of rough grazing but no sign of any path. Thankfully I came down\nabout the right spot as there was a bridge over the railway ahead of me. The\nwalk south was along enclosed tracks through an area of dereliction and rough\ngrazing. Fly tipping was everywhere and indeed this seemed to be an area where\nfridge freezers came to die. A new development known as the Hatfield Link Road\nwas in the early stages of construction which will bring much needed investment\ninto the area. Overall I was glad to leave this part of the world and cross the\nM18 motorway via a farm accommodation bridge. I now had to follow the A1146 for\na short distance before setting off on a field path east then south to cross\nthe A18 to reach the village of Hatfield Woodhouse. It had been spitting with\nrain for some time and it was turning out a very grey day. I turned left in the\nvillage along the A614 before turning right on Remple Lane then Hollin Bridge\nRoad and later continued with Moor Dike Road which I expected from my map to be\na track but this as it turned out was a surfaced lane. Prior to White Bridge\nFarm I stopped at some concrete blocks under a tree for lunch. The weather was\nclosing in with driving fine rain and before I set off I donned full waterproof\ngear as the weather forecast indicated a wet afternoon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There was very little of\ninterest in this flat and rather drab landscape on a day like today. The\nsurfaced road continued but where it went onto towards Lindholme Hall, I turned\noff along a good path running between ponds and woodlands. I now was skirting\nthe western then southern edges of Hatfield Moors and unlike my walk across the\nThorne Moors two days earlier, the paths and tracks here were well defined. In\nthe meantime the rain hadn\u2019t materialised and so I found a seat to remove my\nwaterproofs. There wasn\u2019t a great deal of interest with a high security fence\nand the H.M. Prison Lindholme dominant on my right and thick woodland on my\nleft. I continued south passing a semi empty car park before veering left along\nthe southern edge of Hatfield Moors. There was the occasional Peatlands Way\nmarker but they were a bit patchy on the ground. At least I had the route\nmarked on my map and followed it around to the north of Ellerholme Farm and\nafterwards I carefully looked for the path going south to reach Moor Lane.\nAfter what seemed like hours of walking through the tree canopy I emerged into\nopen countryside. What a gloomy afternoon it was with bad light and little of\ninterest. Reaching the East Ring Drain I met a local dog walker and so I asked\nif it was feasible to walk east along the river embankment rather following the\nlong road route around via Wroot. She told me that I could cross the footbridge\nnorth of Common Lane and then follow the southern bank of the <\/p>\n\n\n\n channel to Tunnel Pits Bridge\neven though it wasn\u2019t shown as a right of way. From what I could see, it was a\nfar better route even though it was along straight riverside embankments. Furthermore\nit would save me walking along two and a half miles of straight roads. I\nthanked her and set out along this route hoping that I wouldn\u2019t need to back\ntrack. Ironically the footbridge over East Ring Drain even had a Peatland\u2019s Way\nsign on it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I reached Tunnel Pits Bridge\nwithout any problems then continued east on a straight and low level road with\nlittle interest but at least it was quiet. Later I turned right along a private\ndrive which later continued as a track beside Greenholme Lane Drain. About a\nmile and a half along here I turned left onto a pleasant wooded path through\nHaxey Turbary Nature Reserve. By now the rain had returned but it was only very\nlight and not enough to warrant donning waterproofs. I pressed on and later\nturned right to join the path soon passing Haslams Farm. Beyond here, the\nground started to rise and I later turned left with the track. In another quarter\nof a mile I had completed the circuit of the Peatland\u2019s Way. <\/p>\n\n\n\n I now turned right uphill and\ncontinued over to Cross Hill and turned left along this lane. The weather was\nclosing in with rain to the south misting away distant power stations along the\nTrent Valley into the afternoon gloom. I set a good pace towards Haxey, taking\na track to the north of the village before turning left again along the road\ncalled The Nooking. The rain was getting heavier and yet I was so close to the\ncar. If I had caught the bus I had just missed in Doncaster earlier in the day I\nwould have been back to the car by now. It was raining steadily as I reached\nthe car and hurriedly changed out of walking boots as the rain turned quite\nheavy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Summing up the Peatlands Way,\nmy impression is that overall I was disappointed with the lack of signage along\nthe trail. It will appeal to the ornithologist and naturalist as the trail\npasses through several nature reserves but in some places I questioned the\nreason why the trail had been routed via a less interesting route using roads\nwhen a suitable nearby path was available.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There are however a few areas\nwhere the walking is interesting especially crossing the Isle of Axholme where\n\u2018big skies\u2019 are the order of the day. On the other hand there are some grubby\nareas the trail also visits.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" One area I have never explored on foot is the countryside covering the vast peat lands which occupy the area between Doncaster and Scunthorpe and include the Isle of Axholme. This would make a walk of three days covering the … Continue reading ![\"\"](\"https:\/\/ramblerseastcheshire.org.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/19-1937-120819-Fihslake-Main-St-village-cross-1024x577.jpg\")
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