More Astronomy : December or January
We will be getting John McEvoy back to the Country Park at some time over the winter, when the evenings are dark enough to see the stars and planets and there are some decent alignments for us to be able to see particular planets, stars and constellations, for some more insights into all things universe-related and some more telescope time looking at the moon & other heavenly bodies. John will also be able to update us all on the revolutionary photos of the universe now being provided by the new Webb Telescope.
Visitor Survey : Visitors’ Requests
One of the main requests was for more information. To help in this, we have obtained funding for 3 notice boards from Chris Stone of Horts Estate Agency and West Hunsbury Parish Council. Big thankyou to both of them. We are hoping that the 3 boards will be installed in the Country Park before the end of September.
We held a meeting on 19th August with West Northants Council, idverde and West Hunsbury Parish Council to discuss the items raised by our visitors in our Visitor Survey at the beginning of the year. Notes of the meeting discussions are now available and can be viewed / downloaded via this link. Further meetings are going to be held, notably in mid-November to inspect drainage, surfacing and access possibilities for the Drovers’ Road and other Park areas.
You can use this link to check the results of the Survey for yourselves now.
Green Lane logs
The section of the ancient Drovers’ Road that runs up Hunsbury Hill from Ladybridge Drive to Hunsbury Hill Road is known to us as Green Lane. A couple of large oak trees have been cut down on Green Lane behind Whaddon Close and we are planning to get a decent bench carved out of one of them and, if we can get sufficient funding, will commission a chainsaw artist to sculpt something appropriate into the bench. If there is anyone out there who would like to sponsor this by funding the work, please contact us through our website.
We have also got approval from WNC to plant some bulbs and whip-hedging in the vicinity of the oak logs. This will probably all be done in or about October of this year.
We are looking for new members
We would like to have some fresh recruits in our group. For all of you who enjoy the Parks, please consider joining us. It’s not very onerous and can be fun. More details here.
Litter Picks
We don’t have any ‘mass’ litter picks planned at the moment, but they are very ad hoc, so keep an eye on our website and Facebook page for when we announce another one.
We usually do them for about an hour at a time. If you want to join in and help, please come along. We’ll provide litter grabs, gloves and bags.
Other things
In the meantime you can always enjoy our Tree Trail and can buy Northampton Lottery tickets using our dedicated page at any time. This QR Code will take you straight there :
Be sure to enjoy the Wildflower Meadow and the Bluebell Wood, but with the latter, please do stick to the established paths round the edge of the wood so as not to squash or damage the flowers.
Remember to keep an eye on this website and on our Facebook page for updates.
Northampton Museum
If you are looking for something to do this autumn when it’s raining (because, of course, you will be in the Parks when it’s warm and sunny, won’t you !) and which is free (like our Parks), we can recommend a visit to Northampton Museum in Guildhall Road, where they have a marvellous display relating to the Hill Fort and the history of the Northampton area.