|
|
| London Colney Nature Reserve |
The London Collney Nature Reserve
is bounded by the High Street, St Annes Road, Shenley Lane and the River Colne. There are free car parks by St Peter's Church and the British Legion hut off Shenley Lane. You can spend a morning in the Nature Reserve and afterwards dine at the Green Dragon or the Bull.
The reserve has three lakes which were gravel workings in the last century. Mining finished, the area reverted to nature. Larger paths were cut through the wooded areas, and some were upgraded for people with pushchairs, or in wheelchairs.
There are several steep slopes, and in places the paths are unfenced. Small children should not enter the reserve without an adult. The lakes are deep in places, with undergrowth and abandoned mining equipment at the bottom. So it is dangerous to swim, and there are few places you can easily climb out.
For a map of the nature reserve click here MAP
The southernmost of the three lakes the Long Lake, the Colne flows through this lake, leaving at the western end, where it passes under a footbridge and then under Shenley Lane. This is the lake where you are most likely to see the crested grebe. This magnificent bird, with its brown crest of feathers above its head, faced extinction in the nineteenth century because ladies wanted their feathers as fashion embellishments. The RSPB was founded initially to protect grebes.
Between Long Lake and Small Lake is a bird hide, giving unobstructed viewing over Small Lake.
The river colne exits the nature reserve along Lowbell Lane. A footpath allows you to follow the river into the The Upper Colne Valley which can be reached by
following the riverside path, under the bypass For a map of the upper colney valley click here MAP
Thanks to Robin Cooper for supplying the information on London Colney Nature Reserve. Copies of his booklet on the nature reserve are availble from the Parish Council office |
|
 |
|
|
|
|
