Horncastle Archives - Lincs Out and About

Snipe Dales Country Park and Nature Reserve

Snipe Dales Country Park and Nature Reserve is situated just off the B1195 between Horncastle and Spilsby, at the edge of the Lincolnshire Wolds. It is one of my favourite places to go for a walk and is popular with families. There are two car parks, a small one at the Nature Reserve, which is free and a second larger car park at the Country Park, which is pay and display.

Stream Snipe Dales

There are two parts to Snipe Dales, the Country Park, which is mostly on higher ground and the Nature Reserve, which is mostly in the valley. The low part of the Country Park and most of the Nature Reserve can be wet, boggy and muddy during the winter and spring. If you park at the Nature Reserve end there is a very steep slope down into the Nature Reserve.

Snipe Dales

Habitats

Snipe Dales has a variety of habitats including wet valleys with streams and flushes, rough grazing, scrub and woodland. These habitats support a diverse range of birds and insects including butterflies, dragonflies and damselflies.

Snipe Dales Geology Information Board

To find out more about the habitats and species check out the Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust’s website. There is also a useful map, showing the different walks. Snipe Dales Round is 3.5 miles long and you need to follow the red square waymarkers, it goes round both the Country Park and the Nature Reserve. The Country Park Trail is 1.25 miles, it goes round the Country Park only and you need to follow the green tree waymarkers.

Snipe Dales Map showing walks

There are information boards throughout the nature reserve, which add interest to the walk, either with details about the habitat or species. The Greenwich Meridian runs through the Country Park and there is a Meridian Stone marking where.

Meridian Stone Snipe Dales

At the car park at the Country Park there are public toilets and picnic benches. Although there isn’t anywhere to buy refreshments, so bring your own drink and snack.

If you prefer a longer walk then there are footpaths that run out of the Country Park towards Hagworthingham.

The Spa Trail – Thornton Lodge near Horncastle to Martin Bridge

The Spa Trail is 3 miles long and leads from Horncastle to Sandy Lane near Woodhall Spa. It follows a section of the disused Horncastle to Woodhall Spa Railway, it is also part of the much longer Viking Way. The trail consists of a hard core surface throughout, which makes it ideal for pushchairs, wheelchairs as well as walking in all weathers, as there are no muddy sections or sections that take you through fields.

Spa Trail Map

I parked my car at the small car park near Thornton Lodge (you are here on the image above) and walked along the trail till I reached Martin Bridge and then walked back. In another post I will do the other part of the trail from Martin Bridge to Sandy Lane.

View from the Car Park at Thornton Lodge

Along the trail there are several sculptures made from stone, wood and metal, as well as information boards, which make the trail an interesting walk for children and adults.

The Spa trail initially runs alongside the Horncastle canal and then goes through farmland.

The various sculptures and information boards along the trail add interest. When I walked along the trail in early spring there were lambs and sheep in an adjacent field. Parts of the trail go through trees so keep an eye out for different birds.