Get Lost Mountaineering

Walk 13 Skellingthorpe Moor & Wiseholme Plantation Crossing A46

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

5 km/3 miles    About an hour plus

Introduction

On the south side of Skellingthorpe are two pleasant woods: Wiseholme Holt and Skellingthorpe Moor Plantation. The latter has some historical interest in that it contains the remnants of buildings which were used to store bombs for the nearby RAF Skellingthorpe/Birchowood during World War 2. This route crosses the busy A46 Lincoln bypass between roundabouts which is not easy as there is no crossing or any other aid to crossing. At busy times, crossing may not be possible. Once across the A46, this half of Skellingthorpe Moor Plantation is not as pleasant as across the main road and it can be quite boggy in places as well as strewn with litter. This route is essentially the reverse of walk 12.

Route

(1) From the community centre car park walk out onto Lincoln Road and turn right towards the Skellingthorpe roundabout. Cross Waterloo Lane and continue, past Skellingthorpe Hall and Daisy Made to reach Skellingthorpe roundabout. On the right of the road is an island which helps with crossing. Continue ahead into Skellingthorpe Road for about 100 metres until a path goes off on the right into the wood with two large stone blocks soon after its start. The general rule through the wood, Skellingthorpe Moor Plantation, which has numerous paths, some dead ends, is to try and steer a central course as the wood is not very wide. It may be necessary to backtrack in places. To the right, the busy A46 is going to be heard but not usually seen. To the left is housing. There are some shallow but muddy ditches which need to be avoided although some makeshift “bridges” have appeared. Follow the path. Very soon there is a way out of the wood to the left but ignore it. Pass an old, small dam which is on your right and keep going. Soon another path leads left and out of the wood so follow this (staying in the wood is very rough). Follow the street for about 50 m then take a path back into the wood about opposite No. 37. If the second path out of the wood looks too overgrown then retrace back to the first path which exits opposite about number 27.  Get back on course following the centre of the wood, crossing a bridge before reaching a ditch which has to be crossed; this is easiest a little further where there is a fence. Continue and reach a clearing then a much more obvious and easy to follow path which crosses a shallow ditch using a makeshift bridge of wood and bottle crates! Reach another clearing and continue ahead, still on an easy to follow path. Reach a track. Turn right and reach the A46 Lincoln bypass which will be difficult to cross as there is no central island.

(2) Cross over and enter the other side of Skellingthorpe Moor Plantation. Follow the path into the wood. Reach a main path and turn left. Follow this until another path goes left to a raised mound. This is where the ruins of the old bomb stores are. Retrace to the main path and continue along it to exit the wood on its NW corner, not the A46 side. Turn right and follow the edge of the open field by the side of the wood just exited. Pass the platforms which were used for loading bombs onto lorries and continue past the end of the wood to the corner of the field. Turn left and follow the edge of the field towards the next wood, Wiseholme Holt, to the next corner where there is a tight squeeze to get onto a track. Turn left on the track and follow it until a metal gate on the left is reached from where there are good views across fields to Skellingthorpe Moor Plantation. Opposite the metal gate is a path into the wood, Wiseholme Holt which soon crosses a small bridge.

(3) Follow the path through Wiseholme Holt wood which seems a much more pleasant wood to walk through than Skellingthorpe Moor Plantation. There is a good path all the way. The general rule is to go right at any junction until the end of the wood is reached. The only ditch to be crossed now has a pipe covered in gravel to make a bridge so it is easily crossed. At the end of the wood, go left and follow a path which comes out behind some houses. This path offers some alternatives as there are some fallen trees although these have now been tidied up. When on the path behind the houses, turn right and continue. Go down a narrow passage to reach h the road called Gardenfield. Turn left and continue ahead to reach Waterloo Lane. Turn right to reach Lincoln Road then turn left back to the community centre.

Notes

(a) This walk took place in May, 2020.