Get Lost Mountaineering

Skellingthorpe to Harby to Eagle to Eagle Hall to N & S Scarle to Meardsall to Swinderby Station to Swinderby to Morton to Whisby to Doddington

Start/Finish

Skellingthorpe community centre where there is usually ample free parking. This is most easily reached from the Skellingthorpe roundabout on the A46 Lincoln bypass. Take the road into Skellingthorpe and the car park is roughly where the cycle track from Lincoln crosses the road.

Distance/Time

43 km/27 miles      About 3 hours

Introduction

This is a pleasant cycle although it does use some minor roads as well as a proper cycle track which is also a popular footpath so keep an eye open for pedestrians. There is a bit of an uphill climb through Whisby. Note that cycling is not allowed in Whisby Nature Park once you are past the car park and visitor centre so if you wish to see the park at close quarters you will need to walk around it! Railway enthusiasts should note that the Lincoln to Newark railway line is crossed 4 times at level crossings, there is still a manned signal box at Swinderby Station and Thorpe Station is also visited. Morton Hall is now an Immigration Centre having formerly been a female prison and a male open prison before that. South Scarle is quite a picturesque village and the old part of Swinderby village isn't far behind.

Route

(1) Follow the cycle track from behind the community centre in the direction of Harby. Soon leave Skellingthorpe behind. After just over 3 km, go under the Doddington Road bridge. Continue for about another 1.5 km to go under the Harby Road bridge. Immediately after, turn left (a tight reverse fork) and follow it up to the road. Turn right and head towards Harby village, passing Queen Eleanor's Primary School. Take the next left, signposted for Swinethorpe, and follow the road around to the right and past the Bottle and Glass pub. Continue to the corner then go straight ahead for Swinethorpe.

(2) Follow the road past the church with the high spire and continue following the road. Swinethorpe is just a few houses after a double bend where the road surface can be very rough. After Swinethorpe the road goes left at a corner. From here it is slightly uphill until Eagle Moor is reached. There are good views of Doddington Hall from the first straight section and the bend at the end of it. The road then meanders before passing some houses and horse fields then joining the main road from Lincoln to Eagle at Eagle Moor crossroads.

(3) Turn right, for Eagle. Reach the village and go past Scarle Lane, on the right. Reach the village hall next to the distinctive entrance to the church. Continue ahead, passing The Struggler (pub) and follow the road through Eagle. There is a left hand bend just before the end of the village followed by some downhill which leads, after a while, to a T junction. Turn right, towards North Scarle, and follow the winding road to reach the hamlet of Eagle Hall. Turn right for North Scarle and pass the entrance to Eagle Hall House (on the left) then reach a T junction by Preston's Farm (on the right). Continue ahead towards North Scarle, about a mile. Reach the crossroads, close to the White Hart in North Scarle. Turn left and go down the main street past the pub to reach the church. Retrace but only as far as the narrow Blacksmiths Lane which connects to the road for South Scarle without having to go back as far as the junction. Turn right at the end of Blacksmiths Lane and follow the road out of North Scarle. Continue ahead at a junction where a road goes left for Eagle (Eagle Hall actually). Reach a T junction at the edge of South Scarle. Turn right and go into the village which is very picturesque and wouldn't look out of place in the Cotswolds. Turn back just after the church and retrace to the junction at the edge of South Scarle. Continue ahead, towards Swinderby. Reach a left turn, a few hundred metres before the level crossing, signed for Meardsall. Take this turning; it says no through road but bikes get through easily. Follow the very minor road to the bridleway railway crossing just after Meardsall Cottage. Cross over and continue to reach the road between Swinderby Station and Swinderby Village – the track after crossing the railway can be muddy for about 5o metres so some may prefer to carry their bicycle. Turn left to visit Swinderby Station which still has a manned signal box by the level crossing.

(4) Retrace slightly back to pass the Meardsall turning then continue on the road towards Swinderby village. Pass some houses then reach a T junction and turn right towards the church. Go past the church to reach a left hand bend; turn right here and immediately pass the Village Hall and Post Office. Go a little further then turn left into Manor Road and follow this until it meets the Collingham road. Turn left then take the second left into Swinderby village. Pass The Plough, telephone box and Mission then the church just before a bend. Soon after the bend, reach the T junction used earlier. Go straight on rather than left which is the way you came. Follow the road to a T junction then turn left for Eagle Barnsdale; this section of road is quite rough. Pass the T junction by Morton Hall Immigration Centre then continue ahead towards Eagle Barnsdale. Reach the level crossing in Eagle Barnsdale. Go across then turn immediate right for Thorpe, and follow the very minor road to join Thorpe Lane (from Eagle) at a T junction. Turn right onto Thorpe Lane and reach another level crossing. Continue to reach Thorpe on the Hill. Soon after, reach a crossroads, go straight across, and continue to the vehicle entrance for Whisby Nature Park where there is visitor centre and cafe. Cycling is not allowed around the park so you can only go around on foot.

(5) When leaving Whisby Nature Park, go straight across the road, up Little Thorpe Lane. Follow the road, lastly uphill to reach Lincoln Lane then turn right and follow the road through Thorpe-on-the-Hill passing the playground and Parish Council Meeting Room. The houses end on a right hand bend after which there is a long downhill back to the crossroads. Continue ahead to Whisby. Pass houses then the Railway Inn then go over a level crossing to enter Whisby. Soon after, the road climbs, fairly gently but for some distance, into Whisby. Continue through to reach the road between Eagle and Lincoln at Whisby Crossroads which is signed. Go straight across, pass some houses then enter a wood and reach another crossroads which is on the road between Eagle Moor and Skellingthorpe. Go straight across for Doddington, and follow a meandering road to reach the busy B1190 at one end of Doddington village. It is only a short section on this busy road and there is a good footpath on both sides of the road.

(6) Soon after joining the main road, there is a wide drive with a sign for “Giant Cycles”. This is the way into the Doddington Hall facilities apart from the actual hall itself which is further down the road. Doddington Hall dates back to Elizabethan times. The facilities include shops and two tearooms as well as a cycle shop. Depending on the time of year, parts of the hall, itself, may be open. It is worth going past the cycle shop to look at the back of the hall and fairly picturesque small lake. In the run up to Christmas, there is a Christmas shop on the way to the lake. Return to the main road and find the start of Kennel Lane, opposite the church. Follow Kennel Lane for less than 100 m, going straight on where it bends to the right. Join the recently created cycle track which takes one back to the main sustrans track from Skellingthorpe. Turn right onto the main track and soon return to the community centre.

Notes

(a) This cycle ride took place in February, 2020.