Gt Barford walk along the river

We had a lovely sunny Saturday afternoon recently so we decided to take a drive over to Gt Barford and take a walk along the river.  We searched around the internet and found a walk:

great barford walk

We parked in the road just by the church in New Road, you will immediately see Barford's fifteenth-century bridge is a popular mooring.  We walked back towards the Anchor Inn, Great Barford crossed the road and walked along the river.    It starts with a cut lawn I guess maintained by the beautiful house just above.  We then followed the river along for a while following the footpath until we reached a bridge.  We crossed the river on to an island and then cross another small bridge and pass a lock-keeper s cottage on the left. The overgrown cottage is really interesting. We were interested to see an old cottage, that looks as though it was recently abandoned, but couldn't find out much about it on the internet. Would love to hear a bit more about the history.

It was a lovely peaceful walk.  And we even saw a goose creche, never noticed this before 2 geese look after all of the little'uns whilst the rest go for a graze!

We turned around and walked back to where we parked and went on the other side of the river to see the lock and weir.  But you can continue and cross the lock and eventually arrive at Willington Lock and then on to the Danish Camp and Bedford or just turn back and return to Great Barford.  



So here are a few pictures of the walk and a bit about Gt Barford that I picked up from the internet:

Great Barford is a village in Bedfordshire,  a few miles north-east of Bedford. It lies on the north bank of the River Great Ouse. Great Barford was mentioned in the Domesday Book as an important site, probably as a means of crossing the river that skirts the village.   Although the area of the original ford was dug up in 1973, the bridge has existed since at least the 15th century. The village is nowadays by-passed by the busy A421 road on the way between Bedford and St Neots, the by-pass opened in 2006 and has improved the quality of village life with much less traffic. The village has two contrasting areas, the more sprawling less attractive newer part that is situated to the north of the more picturesque older and original village, which lies beside the River and has a large variety of buildings some dating to the 17th century.  The older part of the village is known for its All Saints Church, with a 15th-century tower, and its similarly ancient bridge. The surroundings and historic buildings make it a favoured destination for canoeing, angling and picnics.  There is also a popular scout camp by the river in the village near the church, which offers 1.25 acres of camping field together with a slipway and landing stage with access to the River Great Ouse.

Facilities

The Anchor Inn is situated by the river Great Ouse at the picturesque village of Great Barford, with view of the river and the famous bridge with its 17 arches, first built in 1427.  The pub serves a selection of cask ales, lagers and beers and has a comprehensive wine list. It also has a restaurant that seats 40 guests and does bar meals.  The more informal dining area is in the main bar, that is very popular with a good choice of a snacks, main menu and daily specials boards. All food is prepared on the premises, from locally sourced produce with an aim to provide good, wholesome, traditional fare. There is another pub in the newer part of the village, the Golden Cross Pub & Chinese Restaurant is situated in the centre of the village at the cross roads of  High Street, Roxton Road, Bedford Road & Green End Road. it has an ample parking area, and is adjacent the main east-west X5 bus stop. Not just a Local Pub serving fine cask ales, lagers, wines and spirits, run by the owners in the same building is a first class Chinese Restaurant seating up to 60 people with a full menu take away service.  Moving north up the High street from the bridge, you pass many interesting buildings some of them listed, and will also find the village shop and post office.

Local Area

Starting from the bridge there is a public footpath which follows the banks of the river to Bedford. There are also other footpaths that pass through farmland and pastures to neighbouring villages.  Over the road from The Anchor is the village green, a beautiful spot to sit and watch the many boats that pass through Great Barford during the summer months.