The best day walks in Lincolnshire – by Anna Paxton

Author of Day Walks in Lincolnshire, Anna Paxton, gives an overview of six top walks in the region.

Lincolnshire is a large and varied county, meaning that as a walker you can take your pick of routes that cross wide, unspoilt beaches between Cleethorpes and Skegness on the east coast, take in bustling market towns like Horncastle and Grantham, wander along waterways or make your way uphill and down dale in the gently rolling hills of the Wolds. Whichever route you chose, you’re sure to enjoy a peaceful walk, with hints of the county’s history from Roman to more modern times revealed as you explore Lincolnshire’s rural landscape.

Best coastal walk – Moggs Eye-Chapel St Leonards

From the Humber in the north to The Wash in the south, Lincolnshire’s coastline is known for award-winning beaches with expanses of sand and grassy dunes, while the estuaries are made up of salt marshes, mudflats and nature reserves.

Any section of the coast will be beautiful in its own right, but the best coastal walk inDay Walks in Lincolnshire passes installations on a sculpture trail along the way from Moggs Eye to Chapel St Leonards. Each one is thoughtfully designed to highlight the natural features of the landscape, including a sound tower that works with the wind, and a viewing tower that you can climb to get a feel for the surrounding landscape that you can’t appreciate at ground level. My favourite is the cloud observatory at Anderby Creek, where visitors can get hands-on with a series of mirrors and levers at a purpose-built cloud spotting platform. 

I like to look forward to a coffee along the way, but depending on the weather you might fancy ice cream, tea and cake or even fish and chips. Either way, you’ll have the choice while passing Anderby Beach Cafe, the Seascape Cafe at the North Sea Observatory, or take your pick on a wander around the seaside town of Chapel St Leonards. The popular resort of Skegness is just seven miles south, so if you’re staying in the area it’s worth making a day of it to enjoy this coastal walk.

Photo: Observe clouds from the purpose-built cloud bar, Anderby Creek. © Anna Paxton

Best bird watching walk – Frampton Marsh and The Haven

You don’t have to consider yourself a regular ‘birder’ to enjoy the sheer number and variety that thrive in Lincolnshire’s wolds, hedgerows and coast. On most routes inDay Walks in Lincolnshire, birds of prey like kestrel, red kite and buzzards soared and swooped overhead. I saw a starling murmuration, the huge flock wheeling and darting in unison above ploughed fields, and was uplifted by the busy, bubbling song of skylarks which can be found in Lincolnshire’s nature reserves, but also in the comparatively urban environment of Lincoln’s West Common. 

Whether you already know a fair bit about the UK’s winged wanderers, or you’d just like to experience something a bit different, the route I have chosen around Frampton Marsh and the Haven has something for everyone. Starting at the visitor centre at RSPB Frampton Marsh, the route visits wetlands, reedbeds, salt marshes and freshwater scrapes that are home to a huge variety of birds throughout the year. Look out for lapwings and skylarks in spring, marsh harriers in summer, huge numbers of migrating brent geese in autumn, and hen harriers and kingfishers in winter. 

For a small fee that helps support the nature reserve and protect it for the future, you can visit the reedbed hides next to RSPB Frampton Marsh visitor centre, and hire binoculars for even closer views.

Photo: Sea bank overlooking RSPB Frampton Marsh. © Anna Paxton

Best circular walk – Woodhall Spa

Lincolnshire is known for its market towns, like Horncastle, Louth, and Stamford and each one has its own distinct character. I have chosen a route that explores the nature reserves around Woodhall Spa as the best circular route inDay Walks in Lincolnshire. There’s plenty of interest along the way, with opportunities to explore the town’s unique history, quirky architecture and shops, as well as the surprising variety of green spaces it incorporates. 

As the name suggests, Woodhall Spa was designed to be a spa town – an ‘elegant and spacious community in a woodland setting'. The wide streets and leafy suburbs include an unusual heathland golf course, quaint Broadway shopping arcade, and historic Kinema in the Woods. The walk threads together a series of nature reserves, which although relatively small have very different character and habitat. Moor Farm reserve is a mosaic of dry and wet pastures, bog and woodland, Kirkby Moor is heathland of heather and wavy hair-grass, while Ostler’s Plantation is woodland managed by the Forestry Commission. 

Woodhall Spa also has a strong military history, and 617 Squadron (the 'Dambusters') operated from RAF Woodhall Spa in 1944-5. With a little exploration, Ostler's Plantation reveals the concrete remains of bunkers and bomb dumps, while boards along the route explain more about the town’s aviation history.

Photo: Ostler's Plantation, Woodhall Spa. © Anna Paxton

Best pub walk – Willingham Woods to Tealby

There are plenty of pubs in Lincolnshire offering a warm welcome and hearty fresh food, as you would expect from a county that provides Britain with much of our locally grown veg, meat and cheese. I recommend the Day Walks in Lincolnshire route from Willingham Woods to Tealby, which climbs to a panoramic viewpoint on the western edge of the Wolds so you’ll arrive at the pub ready to the enjoy the refreshments on offer.

The walk, which is on the outskirts of Market Rasen, starts with a wander through pinewoods at Willingham Woods before joining the Viking Way as it passes All Saints Church. Also known as the Ramblers’ Church, this is one of the highlights of the popular long-distance trail, with a special stained glass window celebrating the many walkers and cyclists that pass by. It’s worth pausing here to enjoy the view across the flatter plains of Lincolnshire, then keep an eye out for the herd of farmed deer at Walesby and rare-breed Lincoln Longwool sheep at Risby Manor. 

With whitewashed walls and traditional thatched roof, The King’s Head pub sits in a lush cottage garden in the village of Tealby, which is said to be the prettiest in Lincolnshire. If you would like to eat, be sure to book in advance as this popular pub can often be busy. Ale has been served here since at least the fourteen century, so they’ve had centuries to master the art of the perfect pint!

Photo: On the Viking Way in the Lincolnshore Wolds. © Anna Paxton

Best hill walk – Nettleton Wold and Top

In general, Lincolnshire is a relatively flat county, so it seems natural to head for the highest point in search of the best hill walk, which can be found at Normanby le Wold in the Lincolnshire Wolds. Known for its rolling landscape, the Wolds were formed millions of years ago. The chalk and limestone hills are made of the ancient remains of sea creatures, and the valleys scooped out over the ages through the movement of glaciers and rushing meltwater.

TheDay Walks in Lincolnshire route around Nettleton Wold and Top follows a section of the Viking Way through the peaceful chalk valley of Nettleton Beck. It really is a special environment, since rare chalk streams like this are only found in southern and eastern parts of England, as well as Normandy in France. They are fed by groundwater from the chalk hills, where the unusually clear and pure water creates a habitat for a huge number of creatures. Keep an eye out for freshwater shrimps and snails, water voles, otters, and water shrews, along with trout, eels, and kingfishers.

From the valley and beck, the route climbs to Normanby le Wold and, at 168 metres above sea level, the highest point in Lincolnshire. Form this viewpoint on the biggest hill around, it’s possible to look out from the western edge of the wolds across the flatter lands of Lincolnshire as they stretch away into the distance.

Photo: Peaceful countryside in the Lincolnshire Wolds, Nettleton Wold. © Anna Paxton

Best river walk – Burton-by-Lincoln and the Fossdyke Navigation

There are several rivers in Lincolnshire, not least the River Witham that flows through the centre of the historic cathedral city, but the route I’ve chosen as best river walk fromDay Walks in Lincolnshire is actually more of a waterside walk. While it follows the banks of the Witham for a while, it soon branches off to take the towpath of the Fossdyke Navigation. One of Britain’s oldest canals, it was built by the Romans in around 120AD to connect the River Witham to the River Trent.

While many of the routes in Lincolnshire make their way through peaceful countryside, this section of the Fossdyke Navigation offers sixteen kilometres of lock-free paddling, so it’s popular with kayakers, canoeists and stand-up paddleboarders as well as walkers and cyclists. The waterway itself is busy with boats returning to Burton Waters marina, and there are pretty narrowboats moored by the towpath. It makes for a lively atmosphere, and there are pubs with gardens along the way if you’d like to stop for a while and soak up the surroundings. 

The final section of the route returns to more familiar farmland and hedgerows, where the quieter fields offer a chance to see darting hares, or herons fishing in the reed beds.