Northamptonshire Parkrun Diary Part 9: Daventry
A trip out to Daventry Country Park marked my ninth new Parkrun in Northamptonshire with a single loop lap around the reservoir.
A lengthy period of marathon training over the past few weeks meant I spent most Saturday mornings retreating to the comfortable confined of familiar Parkrun venues like the University of Northampton, Irchester Country Park, and Brixton Country Park, but now that marathon season is coming to an end I took the opportunity to break the cycle by visiting Daventry for its 531st event.
The route takes runners around Daventry Reservoir, through wooded areas, along Tarmac paths, over a short bridge, and ending on the Eastern Way Playing Field.
Daventry Parkrun wedges a lot of diversity into the 5K distance, feeling like a ‘greatest hits’ of other local Parkruns. It has a tree-dense section akin to Salcey Forest, a waterside portion not dissimilar to Brixworth Country Park, and a bridge segment reminiscent of Kettering.
It’s a busy event, and there are points in the course where the flow can be affected due to narrowing paths, so it’s likely not an ideal spot to go for a 5K personal best, but it more than makes up for it in how much fun can come from just enjoying the changing terrain.
Being one single loop means there’s always new things to see. The course never becomes predictable, so it felt like the perfect spot to replenish my social battery at an easy pace rather than whiz past all of the natural beauty and forget to soak it in.
In the summer regular road running shoes will more than suffice for the trail paths, though when the cold weather comes around trail shoes might be beneficial.
Like all other Parkruns before it, the volunteers were fantastic, stationed at key points along the path and helping people along with encouragement throughout.
Parking is aplenty, with the nearest car parks being in Eastern Way and Lodge Road.
While Daventry Parkrun is the furthest Northamptonshire event from me, the course, volunteers, and atmosphere made the ~30-minute drive and earlier wake-up call worth it.