This 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] Turn right outside the centre and follow Gleneagles Avenue to Troon Way
[2] Cross Troon Way and turn left to follow it to the traffic lights
[3] Turn right and then cross Melton Road at the pedestrian crossing. Turn right and follow Melton Road for about 500m
[4] Turn left onto Alderton Close to enter Watermead Park. Continue through the car park to the side of Turnery Lake
During high rainfall periods the path in Watermead Park may flood Take care in this area - especially keep an eye on children in the proximity of water
There is a variety of bird species on and around the lake - they are usually quite friendly but take care with children around them
(A) Watermead Country Park is an area of disused and reclaimed gravel pits which were worked until 1989. The Park was developed for recreational use in the late 1980s and early 1990s and has recently been designated as a Local Nature Reserve. It extends for 2 miles along the valley of the River Soar and there are more than 12 lakes and a small number of bird hides.
[5] Take the path to the left and walk towards the Mammoth on the hill top. Follow the path to the right and then turn left at the path 't' junction OR climb the hill to view the Mammoth at close quarters and to enjoy splendid views of the lake then take the steps down to join the path and turn left
The grassy slopes can be wet and slippery and the steps are quite steep - take care.
(B) The Millennium Mammoth (aka the Woolly Mammoth) was built to commemorate the discovery of the remains of an ice age mammoth found when Watermead was a gravel quarry. The remains of other of ice-age animals as well as the Woolly Mammoth were discovered under a log in one of the extraction sites in the 1980s. Woolly Mammoths would have been common in this area between 10,000 and 150,000 years ago.
[6] Follow this path through the flood plain to the road bridge
[7] Turn left to go under the bridge and then left again, walking away from the river to join the path parallel to the road. Follow the path for about 100m then turn right at the gatepost, just before the metal barriers, and follow the path onto Oakland Avenue and continue to its end
[8] Cross over Melton Road then turn right to follow Melton Road for about 200m.
[9] Turn left onto Lockerbie Avenue to return to the centre.