Lincoln to Washingborough. 4.5 miles.
Leaving Lincoln.
I emerge from a few hours enthralled in Lincoln Cathedral and start my Spires and Steeples Trail from the grand west door. In some ways, it would have been more of a climax to finish here, but let’s not belittle Sleaford until we arrive there.
I will probably write about the cathedral soon, but where will I start? There is so much history, beauty, and awe.
It’s easier to just set off on the trail. I want to tick off a few miles to make tomorrow more manageable. Out of the cathedral grounds, Lincoln Cathedral lost its spires centuries ago and down that ‘steep hill ‘ everyone talks about. It is steep, and those coming up take frequent stops to look in the tourist shop windows. 
At the bottom, I dodge a few streets and pass by my first spire. The stately St. Swithins is now looking uncared for. The original church suffered a bad fire in 1644, the fate of many early wooden churches. It was rebuilt but replaced with this Neo-Gothic building in 1869, designed by James Fowler, a distinguished Victorian church architect. The mathematician George Boole was christened in the earlier church in 1815. More of him later. The congregation still meets in a nearby building whilst the repairs to the church’s roof are being funded. 
The River Witham is navigable from Lincoln to The Wash at Boston, made possible by canalisation in the C18th. I cross over and start walking out of the city, passing a lock basin. 
Along the banks are the remains of industries past, but it doesn’t take long to reach more rural scenery. 
I come across my first S & S waymark, but I may have missed some in the city. 
Looking back, the Cathedral dominates the skyline, as it does from miles around. 
The track is popular with cyclists and joggers. A cycleway, The Water Rail, goes as far as Boston on the old railway. I’ve just realised I’m on an old rail track. The railway that finished off most of the river traffic. It took a package boat six hours to get to Boston; the train took one and a quarter hours.
Easy going and I reach the old railway station, cosed 1940, where I cross the ditch into a small park. There are a few animal statues to look out for, and then I’m on the main road through Washingborough, right next to a bus stop with the first steeple for tomorrow visible up the hill.
A good start to the trip, and I finished before it became dark.
As I explained in my introduction https://bowlandclimber.com/2024/12/06/spires-and-steeples/ I am booked into a pub in Metheringham for a few days and aim to use bus transport to the ends of each stage.
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PS. This walk was completed on December 3rd – I’m not crazy enough to be out in Storm Darragh.
