[1] From the pub turn right, uphill, passing the church on your left up to the edge of the village.
(A) It is worth taking time out for a closer look at the scenic little church as you pass by. It is normally unlocked. If you take a look at the wall on the far side of the graveyard, you can see where the limewash has fallen off that the wall is made of mud! This is a rare survivor of what was once a common building technique in the area. It was mainly used for low status or farm outbuildings, so few survive, though a few unknown examples are likely to still be around in cottages, hidden behind vanity cladding. The tiles, or 'hat' along the top are essential to stop it being washed away. You will find an even better example of such a wall in Laughton village on the adjoining Leicestershire Round walk.
Just before the de-restriction speed limit signs, turn right on a bridleway, which is signed "Gumley 1 Mile via Foxton Locks". Follow the good track down to reach the Foxton Locks Inn.
(B) To your left is the popular and historic Foxton Locks country park. It is well worth spending time here to explore. The canal, which is the Leicester Line of the Grand Union Canal, comes down a steep bank here through two sets of staircase locks, the biggest such flight in the country. They are defined as staircases because one lock opens directly into the next. They were completed in 1814 and are now a grade II* listed monument. You will see large holding ponds beside the locks that are used to hold water leaving the lock above, which is then used to fill the lock below.
It takes nearly an hour for a boat to go through the locks, with only one opportunity for boats to pass half way up, so they became quite a bottleneck when the canal was busy. In 1900 an inclined boat lift was built to bypass the locks and increase capacity. This reduced the passage time to 12 minutes, for up to 4 boats at a time. You can find the remains of the incline on your left as you look up the hill. Boats were floated into water filled steel tanks at the top and bottom, then the tanks were hauled up and down the incline by a steam engine. It worked well, but was built just as the canal traffic was declining. It became uneconomical to run by 1911 and was mothballed. A particular problem was the steam engine, which had to be kept going, and burning expensive fuel, even when no boats were passing. It was finally sold for scrap in 1928. There are ambitious plans to restore it, as the locks, now busy with leisure traffic, are once again a bottleneck.
There is an interesting museum in the old engine house, which has a model of how the incline worked, and lots of other interesting information and canal memorabilia.
The old lock keeper's cottage at the top of the locks is now a nice cafe, and there is a pub and shop at the bottom of the flight.
Cross the canal via a bridge just beyond the inn and continue ahead on the track. When it swings right carry straight on through a gate. Keep ahead, gradually angling towards the right hand hedge, and continuing to reach a road. Cross straight over and take the bridleway opposite that goes straight across a short field to another road.
[2] Turn left, and 20 metres after crossing a small stream turn right on a bridleway. After 10 metres take a gate on the left. Follow the right edge of the field ahead. Ignore a footpath going right at the first waymark post and continue to a second post where the bridleway goes right over a small bridge. Follow the right edge of the next field to a gate in the far corner, cross a track to another gate and continue ahead with the hedge on your right to eventually reach a gate in the hedge.
[3] Go through and turn right to another gate. Cross a track and continue ahead across two more fields to a gate in the far left corner of the second one. Now leave the bridleway, which goes straight up the steep bank by the fence, and go slightly left up the bank, then along the top of a steep slope down to your left, to reach a gate. Go through and cross an area of rough ground to the left end of a corrugated iron barn. Step over the low fencing on your left into the farmyard and turn right down the track to reach the main street through Gumley. Turn right to the telephone box.
[4] Now on the Leicestershire Round, which you will be following all the way back, turn left in front of the telephone box. Go through a gate and keep by the right hand fence to a kissing gate. Go through, and slightly left down across the following field to another gate. Keep straight ahead across a number of fields, following the prominent yellow way markers, to reach the canal. Cross over the narrow footbridge and turn right along the towpath to reach the canal junction, with the Foxton Locks Inn in front of you.
Turn left past the swing bridge and follow the canal all the way to the first road bridge.
(C)You are now on the 5.5 mile long Market Harborough arm of the Grand Union Canal. This was originally planned in the 1790's to be the mainline on a route connecting the river Soar at Leicester to the Nene at Northampton, but funds ran out after it reached Market Harborough in 1809. When the route down Foxton Locks was completed in 1814 an alternative through route became available and this stretch became a small branch to wharves in Market Harborough.
Go up to the road, turn right over the bridge and carry on back to the start.