[1] Turn right onto Astill Lodge and almost immediately turn right onto the footpath and walk up to Astill Lodge Park.
[2] Turn right onto Churchbell Way, continue over Astill Lodge Road (take care crossing this road), pass Heatherbrook Primary School and continue through to enter the Blue Gates Quarter of Castle Hill Country
[3] At the crossing of the paths turn left along 'Black Pad' and turn left to walk to the open space of Gorse Hill Bank. (The hedgerow along Black Pad is thought to date to 1686, possibly earlier.) Continue ahead on the path. At the litter bin, turn right. At the next path junction (by the lamp post), bear left on the tarmac track which heads through trees towards a meadow.
[4] Take the uphill mown path straight in front to enter the Gorse Hill Wildflower Meadow.
(A) The trees and hedgerow to the right of the field are on the site of a medieval earth bank bordering Gorse Hill, which formed the border of ancient Beaumont Leys. Somewhere through the trees, deep ditches are thought to mark the old gate or entry point to the historic Beaumont Leys Woodland/ Park, associated with the medieval Earls of Leicester (approximately 800-900 years ago). The Gorse Hill road was originally the track of an ancient route to Ashby de la Zouch. This track was a 'drovers road' - a road used by farmers to herd their animals to market.
(B) The wildflower meadow was established in 1986 and its variety of flowers attracts a number of species of butterfly.
Turn right at the top and continue ahead to return to the main path and turn left.
[5] Almost immediately, just before the A46, turn right onto the main path. Bear left at the fork in the path and continue up the hill.
[6] At the top of the hill, where paths cross, turn left onto the track. Follow this path into the Bradgate View Point area and round to the right with the meadow on your left. At the two wooden bollards continue forward on the mown track through the meadow.
[7] At the end of this meadow turn left just before the gate and immediately bear right to take the track through the woodland. Note the notice board on the left about woodland wildlife. Continue through the trees until you reach the track junction just before the A46 footbridge.
[8] Turn right and then follow the path to return to the start.