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This survey was carried out in May and June 2004 by members of the Gayton Environment Action Group.
RL1 The footpath begins on Bugbrooke Road, on the right going out of Gayton, after the last house. The footpath sign is in place. The path is clearly marked across the first field. It actually runs along the left hand side of the hedge, but on the map it is shown on the right of the hedge. Should the map be updated to show this apparent rerouting of the right of way? At the end of this field, the path turns right onto the track that leads to Park Lane, then sharp left along that track. The footpath sign is in place, pointing along the track away from Gayton. The wide, grassy, clearly marked track between 2 fields, with hedge to the right, leads across the brow of the hill, with extensive views over Northampton and Bugbrooke. At the end of the hedge on the right, the path continues almost straight ahead, just a few degrees to the left, across a field. There were crops growing, but the path was very clearly marked. It goes down a steep incline to a hedge and through a gap in the hedge. Beyond the hedge the path turns left and runs along the side of the hedge, to the right. There is no sign at all at this point, neither to indicate that the path goes through the hedge, nor that it changes direction on the other side of the hedge. The path follows the hedge down to Banbury Lane. This is not the original route of the path, which has very recently been diverted because of the construction of the new road bridge to replace the level crossing. It used to run diagonally from the gap in the hedge down to Banbury lane, coming out onto the road about 20yards from the level crossing. The old footpath sign still stands at this point, but the contractors have mounted signs, indicating that the footpath is closed and directing pedestrians down Banbury Lane to the new, temporary (?) entrance by the hedge. The last 30-50 yards of the path run through the corner of the work site and fencing has been erected to mark the new route of the path. RL2 This path runs from Park Lane down to the bottom of Wright’s Lane. I started at the bottom. The footpath sign on Wright’s Lane is in place, but is almost invisible, because an Elder tree has grown up all around it. Also the stile across the fence is almost invisible and quite inaccessible, because it is covered by the hedge. There is a gate to the right of the stile which can be opened. The path leads diagonally across a field, which was planted with corn. The path was barely visible, no attempt had been made to clear the path, but the corn was a few inches lower along the route of the path. At the other side of the field, in the corner is a wooden bridge across a stream. The hedge and nettles are growing across the entrance to the bridge, making access difficult. There are round arrow footpath markers on both sides of the bridge. According to the map, the footpath leads dead straight across the field, from the bridge to a gate at the top left hand corner. In fact the worn path goes round the edge of the field, left from the bridge to the sewer works, then right, up the hill, following the fence to the left. At the gate there is no stile and no footpath sign at all. The choice is to climb over the gate or the fence, or to crawl through a gap in the fence! The track leads up to Park Lane, where there is a footpath sign pointing down the hill. At this point the map shows the footpath going left along Park Lane and onto the High Street, but there are no signs apart from the one at the end of park Lane pointing down the track. RL3 starts at the top of Wright’s Lane on the right going away from Gayton. The footpath sign to Rothersthorpe is in place but it is rusty, faded, difficult to read and crooked. We could do with a new one! You go through a gate into an enclosure for horses. The path is not marked and the grass was high, diagonally across to the opposite corner, there is a stile. On the other side of the stile is a new horse enclosure, very recently fenced in. Again, diagonally across there is a new stile cut into the new fence. I understand from Stan that the Rights of Way people, following a complaint, have ordered that the new stile be removed and replaced with a gate. After the second enclosure, you enter a field of crops. The path is clearly marked through the crops and leads to a stile at the bottom of the field. There is a round arrow marker on the fence post next to the stile, pointing down the hill to the bridge over the railway, and one pointing up towards Gayton. You cross a grassy field, at this time of year full of sheep and lambs, there is no sign of the path. A metal gate leads to the railway bridge. There is no public footpath sign or marker here. The path goes over the bridge, along the side of the next field - it’s a well worn track with a hedge to the right - to the bridge over the canal. There is a metal gate before the bridge and a stile to the left of it. There is no public footpath sign here either. On the other side of the canal bridge, there is access to the canal path tow path (RL18), through a gap in the hedge on the right. There is no sign or marker on this side of the canal either. The path goes straight ahead, running along the side of a field to a thicket or copse on the far side of the field. At the corner of the field, you need to bear left for a few yards, then enter the thicket and look for a fairly well hidden wooden bridge in the trees, leading over a stream. There is no sign or marker to indicate the whereabouts of this bridge, though there is a marker on the bridge itself, pointing across the bridge towards Rothersthorpe. This is the end of RL3, it becomes LA4 and continues to Rothersthorpe. RL4 starts on the Milton Road, just before the pumping station, on the left going towards Milton and it leads to Rothersthorpe. We walked it in reverse, coming back from Rothersthorpe. The path from Rothersthorpe is LA3 and it becomes RL4 at a stile, in a gap in a hedge, where there is a stone farm building just to the right, coming from Rothersthorpe. There are markers on the stile pointing towards Rothersthorpe and to Milton road. After the stile, you bear right, walk around the farm building and follow a grassy path, that skirts the edge of the field, with a high hedge and deep ditch to the right. At Milton Road the public footpath sign, an old wooden one, is in place, pointing towards Rothersthorpe. RL5 leads from Milton Road in a straight line across a field to the Blisworth Arm on the Grand Union canal. It is about 350 metres long and starts half way between the railway and canal bridges. The public footpath sign is an old wooden one, still in good condition, but the words "public footpath" need repainting on the Gayton side. The original access to the path, next to the sign is overgrown by elder but a new access has been created 3 yards further down by beating down the wire fence. The field was freshly ploughed, there was no sign of the path and the going was very rough (good chance of a sprained ankle!) Just over half way along the path at the bottom of the hill, there is a ditch with a stream, running alongside a hedge with gaps. At one of the gaps there is a kind of bridge over the ditch, consisting of a large pipe, covered by soil and turf. After the bridge you continue uphill across the field to the Blisworth Arm, where rough stone steps lead up to the canal path through a gap in the hedge and broken down wooden fence. There is no public footpath sign at this end of the path, just a round arrow marker, fixed to a piece of timber at ground level and half hidden by grass. RL 6 This short path (400m) runs close to the railway from the bridge at Milton Road to the bridge on the Arm Road close to its junction with Station road, Blisworth. It is clearly signposted at each end, but in summer progress is considerably hampered by overgrowth with nettles (for some impossible without protective clothing), particularly at the south eastern end by the steep bank leading to the roadway. RL 7 This path begins at the signpost on the right side of Blisworth Road a few metres past the old railway bridge going out of Gayton past the Britain cottages. On the Ordnance Survey Explorer 207 map the path is marked as going diagonally across the field towards the solitary tree where there is an open gate. In early summer the grass is waist-high and very heavy going until cut for hay. An easier route is to follow the direction close to the edge of the field at the railway cutting as indicated by the signpost, turning left after going through the gap in the hedge at another bridge and joining RL 9, thus approaching the tree along the edge of the field on the other side of the hedge. At the tree RL 7 continues as a well-trodden track about 0.5m wide for 250m across a field of cereal down to the road. Here the path is signposted on both sides of the road, and it continues up a track passing Gayton Wood farm on the right to reach the dual carriageway, A 43 (T), the parish boundary. There is a stile on the left only a short distance up the track but this leads only to ponds and is not part of the footpath. RL 9 The start of this route is marked by a post near the road at Gayton Wilds House, Tiffield Road. The way is clearly marked at the bridge over the disused railway, where it joins RL 10 to the left. Although there is no footpath sign where this path joins RL 7 by the open gate, the way to the road is clear (see RL 7). RL 10 The beginning of this path is indicated by a sign on the gatepost at Britain Cottage No. 1 on the Blisworth Road a few metres before the bridge. After about 50m there is a stile (in satisfactory condition) to negotiate. After about 400m along the edge of a field the path goes through a gap in the hedge at the disused railway bridge to join RL 10. RL12 walked in fine dry weather on Wednesday 16th June 2004. RL12 leaves the Eastcote Road at Westgate House in a South Westerly direction for some 450m, turns sharply south for another 450m then sharply to the East to rejoin the Eastcote Road close to The Old Wilds. Both ends are marked with “Footpath” signs. The first 100m or so are fairly clear but after that the roadway is overgrown, some of the weeds which include nettles and goose grass rising to a height of 1.2m. The stile where the path first changes direction was not immediately visible. Turning southwards through more undergrowth a post and rail fence with "pigwire" attached was encountered. No stile or gateway was provided to reach the paddocks beyond this point. The two paddocks were in pasture, easy to cross and both fences-timber post and rail-contained gates in the appropriate places. Footpath RL17 joins with RL12 at Goggs Farm and RL12 continues southward until a stile is reached taking the path to the other side of the hedge. This stile is partly overgrown and requires clearing. Difficulty is experienced just after the path turns to the East and runs behind an old outbuilding belonging to the owner who lives in The Old Wilds. A "makeshift" fence has been erected, without a stile and difficult to climb over, so preventing access to the remaining part of the footpath leading to and rejoining the Eastcote Road. This end of the footpath is marked with a proper sign and a stile alongside the gate, the stile appearing to be in need of attention. The owner of Goggs Farm, Mr. Marcus Reeder is constructing a track for his horses in the field contained by the Eastcote Road and footpaths RL12(part) and RL 17 and enclosed by a post and wire fence. A gateway will be provided, to ensure the continuity of RL12, near the old outbuilding already referred to. RL13 This is a bridleway starting from beyond the last houses on the right along Eastcote Road and going towards Dalscote. A good bridleway signpost was in place. Entrance to the field was by an iron gate. The bridleway was well defined the whole way by a rough track made by a farm vehicle, and finished at the well-signed bridge over the stream at the Pattishall parish boundary. (Path walked on Monday 31 May 2004 in very dry conditions) RL14 This footpath starts at the Pound where there is a footpath sign. The path at one time went behind the garages which have been demolished so there is no clear path. Presumably the original path was close to the hedge but this is now overgrown and it is necessary to walk over the garage foundations and the edge of the car park to the footpath between the school and the rear of houses in Hillcrest Road. There is no marker at the start of this section. Would suggest a round arrow footpath marker be fitted here. The first few yards are very overgrown and need to be cleared. The rest of the path had been cleared by Ken Cokayne who we later met so were able to thank him. At the end of this path is a stile which had a round arrow footpath marker on both sides. The lower rail was loose at one end and requires fixing. From here the path was generally overgrown until the rear of the farmyard where it was then defined by a farm vehicle track. There were no further markings thereafter. The track/path follows the left hand side of the hedge but petered out at the bottom of the slope. It re-emerged as we turned left but there is no marker pointing left here. The path continues adjacent to the hedge until a break in the hedge is reached where it continues over a well-signed bridge over the stream and enters Pattishall parish. (Path walked on Monday 31 May 2004 in very dry conditions) RL15 From Bugbrooke Road, on right going away from Gayton at bottom of hill, diagonally across to Banbury Lane. This footpath appears to be extinct. There are no signposts or other indication of a path either from Bugbrooke Road or Banbury Lane. The fields where the path should be are completely cultivated. RL16 From Banbury Lane, on left going from level crossing towards Rothersthorpe, across fields towards Bugbrooke. The signpost is in place although partially obscured by overhanging foliage. Entry to the field (cultivated) is via an iron gate. The path follows close to the right of the hedge and then over a stile crossing the hedge. It is here that the stile and round arrow marker are almost entirely obscured by high nettles. The marker is fixed with only one nail and points in the wrong direction. The rail of the stile is loose. The path continues in the same direction but now to the left of the hedge (pasture). The path continues through another gate and at the corner of the next field are round markers pointing ahead and back. Straight ahead across the next field the path is well defined by a wide track cut through the crops. Ahead is a well-marked footbridge across a stream identifying the end of the parish boundary. RL 17 walked in fine dry weather on Wednesday 16th June 2004. This footpath links Blisworth Tiffield and Eastcote Roads running North East-South West and eventually joining RL12 at Goggs Farm. Commencing at Goggs Farm the footpath runs alongside the south side of the hedge to the access road to the farm, arriving at Eastcote Road by means of a stile, very overgrown and just usable. It then goes across the road and the path continues around a small pond on the left and continues in the direction of Tiffield Road, walking by the side of the hedge and reaching Tiffield Road by crossing a tiny pond on two wooden planks. The path continues across Tiffield Road into a field with a hedge / trees on the right, across an open part of the field and on to Britain on the Blisworth Road. RL17 is a well defined path, does not suffer from overgrowth. Perhaps a simple handrail would be useful when crossing the wooden planks and two waymarkers introduced- one half way between Tiffield and Eastcote Roads –approximately- and the other in the vicinity of the pond by the Eastcote Road. A “Footpath”sign is still missing at Britain and should be replaced as a matter of urgency. RL18 walked in fine dry weather on Tuesday 15th June 2004. Footpath RL 18 is, in its entirety, a part of the Grand Union Canal Walk from London to Birmingham. No signposts provided nor considered necessary. The path is joined at Canal Bridge No 47 on the Gayton to Milton Road and can be followed in a north westerly direction to the Parish boundary with Bugbrooke, (marked by wooden posts set in the ground, one on either side of the canal.) RL18 is crossed by Footpath RL3 (Gayton- Rothersthorpe) at Canal Bridge No 46. RL18 continues to Canal Bridge No45 where it passes below Wrights Lane and thence to Banbury Lane Crossing where, if desired, Footpaths RL1 and RL16 can be joined. From Banbury Lane Footpath RL18 continues alongside the canal for about 400m and becomes Footpath KD26 at the Gayton-Bugbrooke boundary. This is an interesting walk with some pleasant open views incorporating the West Coast Mainline Railway. Ignore the landfill site at the commencement and look out for some lovely clumps of yellow irises on the canal bank and in due season blackberries along the hedgerows! No problems encountered. RL19 from Blisworth Road, past back of St. Marys Court to Baker Street. There are no signposts at either end of the path. The path runs between the hedge of the field and the rear gardens of houses in St Marys Court. Whilst the path is passable now, it is likely to become overgrown with nettles and brambles later in the summer. RL20 goes from Fiveways across the green to the entrance of the village hall and the top end of Hillcrest Road. It is about 100 metres long. This is also the starting point of RL14, which leads between the back of the village hall and the school. There is a public footpath sign to indicate the start of RL14 and RL5 is indicated by a blue and white sign pointing along the path to the village hall, with the words “village hall” and a pedestrian symbol. The path is tarmacked. There is no footpath sign at the Hillcrest Road end. Gayton Environment Action Group, 5th July 2004. |