Our long-standing friends, Sue & Kevin, are great walkers who’ve done several walks all over the world, but the one we remember them best for is their walk along Hadrian’s Wall
Sue & Kevin have sent in their 6km (3.8 mile) “Walk from my Doorstep” which is fab!
They live in a place called Isham, which we know really well. Why? Well we got married at Isham Church back in 1983
The village sits about three miles south of Kettering. The river Ise, which we’ve walked along many stretches, lies to the east of the village. Did you know, the river runs the whole of its course in Northamptonshire?
So come on Sue & Kevin..show us your walk…
Let’s Walk!
1. Today we start the walk from the bus shelter opposite the old shop on the A509 in Isham
Walk up the lane in the direction of the sign. At the top of the lane is a stile & gate. The gate is open to the right & it’s just easier to walk through, rather than climb over the stile
2. Keep walking straight ahead & don’t be tempted to veer off to the left, unless you want to have a turn on the play equipment!! The stile is hidden in the hedge at the top of this field in a gap in the hedge
3. Walk straight across the next field in the direction of the broken stile…
4. At the stile turn right & follow the path towards the houses. Keep on the path, turning left at the houses
Before the end of the field, & after the last house, there’s a gap in the hedge. Turn right & keep walking past the back gardens of the row of houses with a wire fence
5. You’ll reach a track at the end of this field. Turn left & follow the track. Shortly after that the track turns right down the next field
Keep walking along the next hedge on your left. Once you reach the hedge, turn left to follow the track (walking on either side of the hedge is fine). Cross over the stile & keep following the hedge line
6. Cross the wide concrete road & walk up the steep bank. At the top is a gap in the hedge…
7. Follow the clearly marked path diagonally across the next field. There’s another stile to cross here. Keep walking once you cross until you see a bridge on your right which crosses a stream
You’ll see a clear path marked diagonally across the field
Keep following this path until you reach another stile/fence/gate combination
8. Cross the stile & once you’re in the field, turn left &, hugging the hedge line, walk until you get to another stile. There are two stiles close together – cross them both
9. Head towards the house in the right-hand corner. You’ll see a stile leading to an alleyway. At the top of the alley turn right & walk to the junction. Turn right & walk up to the main road, past the Overstone Arms pub. In normal times, this serves coffee, lunches & evening meals
Turn right along the main road, past the church
10. Ignore the first “footpath to Isham” sign you come to, unless you want to climb over about four gates. Soon after this is a house called ‘The Elms’ & another footpath sign
Turn right & walk down to the gate. Ignore the ‘Bull in field’ sign! I’ve never seen one, only horses
11. Walk across this field & you’ll get back to the stile you crossed earlier. Take the diagonal path & retrace your steps back to the bridge across the stream. Turn left & walk to the stile. which will take you across the next field, back to the turkey farm.
Once through the turkey farm. keep walking & you’ll see a stile. Here you have a choice…you can either go back the way you came, or cross the stile & walk across the clearly marked, diagonal path up to the next stile
12. Turn left into a lane known locally as ‘the ruts’
Walk to the bottom of this lane & you’ll join the A509. Turn right & keep walking until you’re back at the bus shelter where the walk began
This is a nice, easy 6 km walk with a pub halfway round for refreshments. Lots of stiles, but some of them are broken, so no climbing involved. Look out for red kites & muntjac deer
Go Walk!