This inner city walk has a number of busy roads, please take care when crossing these and use pedestrian crossings where possible
Some of the pavements and paths are uneven in places - take care.
[1] Enter into the park from the car park and turn right along the main path. Continue ahead passing the bowling green. At the tree carvings go right then right again to reach the Sensory Garden.
[2] Keep on to the right of the Sensory Garden to the exit onto Abbey Park Road. Turn left and continue ahead to the pedestrian crossing just after the river bridge.
[3] Cross Abbey Park Road and continue forward down the ramp onto the river path. (Take care as cyclists also use this path). Pass the rear of the National Space Centre and continue between high fences to the rear of the Abbey Pumping Station.
(A) Note the old factory buildings on the right. These were at the heart of Leicester's prosperity in the 19th and 20th centuries. There is also a view of the 1910 factory chimney of the Leicester clothes manufacturer Wolsey. This large concern was named in honour of Cardinal Wolsey - King Henry VIII's chief adviser who died in Leicester in 1530 and is buried in Abbey Park. (For more about the Wolsey factory, see additional information, later).
(B) The National Space Centre is a visitor attraction dedicated to space science and exploration. The building was designed by Nicholas Grimshaw and opened in 2001. The centre arose from a partnership between the University of Leicester and local government agencies. It provides education to children of all ages (and adults!) and features interactive museum galleries, planetarium and rocket tower. See website for visitor opening times and prices: http://www.spacecentre.co.uk/.
(C) Abbey Pumping Station is Leicester's Museum of Science and Technology. It offers free entry - small charges do apply on special events. The pumping station was a grand Victorian building containing beam engines. It was operational from 1891 to 1964 and was used to transfer over 1 million litres per hour of Leicester's effluent to the Beaumont Leys sewage treatment works - which is now the site of the huge shopping centre! After renovation, the Pumping Station opened as a museum in 1972. Together with the National Space Centre they tell the story of over 200 years of science and technology. See website for opening times: http://www.abbeypumpingstation.org/.
[4] Cross a stream then at the path 't' junction turn left onto the path which becomes Corporation Road and continue past the pumping station.
[5] Turn immediately left onto Wallingford Road and continue to the Space Centre. At the Challenger statue at the end of the road go on down the path between the Space Centre and the car park.
[6] At the end of the car park turn left onto Exploration Drive and, after a short distance, turn left onto Discovery Road.
Note: All the roads here are named with a 'space/exploration' theme - you might like to guess what they are named for (see the answers in the additional information section, later).
[7] Turn left onto the path at the end of Discovery Road to the riverside path.
[8] Turn right, continue ahead to Abbey Park Road and then retrace your steps to the start.