Start: Red Lion at Hellidon NN11 6LG. Start Grid Ref: SP519 581
(S/E) Start from the delightful Red Lion Inn at Hellidon. With your back to the pub go up the road directly opposite the front of the pub signposted Priors Marston 2 miles. After 100 yards take the lane on the right and follow around to the left, signposted Priors Marston and Southam.
(1) Ignore the footpath on left near the bend and continue ahead (West) along the lane past the T-junction (on your right you have some splendid views past Canning's Spinney to the north). Pass the entrance to Hellidon Lakes Hotel and Golf Course and continue along the lane until you reach crossroads.
(2) Turn right at the crossroads and, after 100 yards, take the stile and footpath left to go ½ right across the field keeping the Charwelton Communication tower to your far left. As you descend down the field you can enjoy an attractive panorama of open countryside ahead.
Go through a narrow waymarked hedge gap and continue down the field keeping a low broken hedge left. Go past the spinney on the left to the corner then stay straight ahead across the open field towards the gap to the right of two trees, into next field. Keep ahead on track until you reach the road through a metal gate.
(3) Turn left on the road for 80 paces, then take a waymarked footpath right along the track, at the end of which take a stile into a field and continue ¼ right towards the corner of copse to take the gap into the next field keeping fenced hedge and small concealed pond on your left.
(4) Go through the two gates ahead and turn immediately right keeping the hedge right. Here you have joined The Millennium Way. Continue with the hedge right and follow the hedge as it curves left. Go over a stile which sticks into the field and after 100 yards go past a metal gate then a few paces further on take a stile right and then go through a metal gate.
Continue straight for 30 paces keeping the hedge right and, after passing the bush at the end of the grassy mound, go half left across the field to take the metal gate then footbridge through the hedge and over the stream. Keep ahead with the house left and after 100 yards, take a stile left to the path and then driveway to reach the road.
(5) Turn right on the road and enter Priors Marston. On reaching the T-junction bear left up the road to pass the Priors Marston War Memorial (go right here for The Hollybush pub) on your right and, where the road divides, take the right fork signposted Lower Shuckburgh and Napton.
Continue along Shuckburgh Road passing the telephone box on left and continuing past School Lane, St Leonards Close and Vicarage Lane on right. On reaching a red pillar box we leave The Millennium Way and continue on to the next junction and turn right up Keys Lane.
(6) After 50 yards take the waymarked lane left, into the second Keys Lane (with a list of named cottages on the sign). Stay ahead to the end of the lane, which swings left, and take the gate ahead to follow the footpath diagonally right under the power lines across the field. Take the next gate and cross the farm track to go through another gate then continue ahead through a small copse. Take the metal kissing gate ahead and follow footpath half right across the field.
(7) Go through the gap ahead to cross a small plank footbridge and continue directly ahead across the centre of the next field. Go through the large five-bar gate ahead then immediately leave the cinder track to continue slightly right on the previous line towards the edge of the wood.
Be sure to maintain a straight line (East) towards the centre of the wood to find a narrow gap (with large black & white waymarker arrow - which is very difficult to see from a distance) to enter the wood.
Go along a well-defined path through wood following signs, eventually to emerge on to Hellidon Golf Course, after a pond on your right.
(8) At the edge of the golf course follow the waymark sign and go half right across the first fairway uphill towards a copse of trees. Pass just to the right of a small clump of trees to enter the copse of trees following another black & white waymark sign just inside the copse and emerge at the other side of the copse to meet another fairway.
At this point go half right across the fairway keeping a small cluster of trees to your left to find a mid-hedge wooden footbridge. Cross the footbridge and walk slightly left across the fairway aiming to go between the two lakes ahead and partly walk around the edge of the right-hand lake and turn left to follow the line of trees left.
Continue ahead towards a fairway and green and cross the fairway with green right to reach another waymarker post just beyond the green.
(9) Descend steps through small copse crossing wooden plank bridge, then go over gap stile into a field. Go ¼ right uphill across the field to find the top right corner kissing gate (ignore the first wooden kissing gate right, 2/3rds up the field).
Take that corner kissing gate and continue along the edge of the field with hedge left to take next kissing gate then follow the path round with a fence, then a hedge, on the left to emerge onto the road.
(10) Go left for 50 yards to a bench with a fantastic view, then right and down Church Lane, passing Berry Lane and Cox's Lane. After passing St. John the Baptist Church, immediately take a left turn into Little Back Lane and walk 75 yards to a T-Junction opposite a red telephone box.
Turn right passing the Old Mill House on your right to walk up the lane, which will bring you back to your starting point at The Red Lion Inn. (S/E)
