Stoke Bardolph

WHAT IT’S LIKE

A quiet riverside village near Nottingham with an easy Trent-side walk, a working lock, and a 200-year-old pub to finish at.

Stoke Bardolph is a small village on the banks of the River Trent, best known locally for its tranquil riverside walks and the Stoke Lock, built in 1923. There are no shops or a post office here, but the Ferry Boat Inn, over 200 years old, sits right on the riverbank at the spot where a ferry used to cross to Shelford until it stopped running about 40 years ago. It's a simple, free outing for families who fancy a flat walk by the water and a pub stop, rather than a purpose-built attraction, river wildlife along the bank is part of the appeal, and it gets busiest in summer. A self-guided walk leaflet for the village is available online if you want a route to follow. There's also a working sewage treatment farm here (now run by Severn Trent Water), which sounds unglamorous but is part of the village's history, raw sewage was historically spread on the land and is now used as fertiliser on local farms.