With shady woodlands it’s perfect for getting out of the heat
With temperatures set to reach record highs in London this week, most of us will be trying to avoid the heat. If you still want to get outside, it’s wise to find somewhere cooler to stroll, so woodlands are ideal.
Sitting just off a busy road, this North London nature reserve manages to deliver a genuine pocket of calm in one of the city’s busier areas. Camley Street Natural Park is a nature reserve practically on the doorstep of King’s Cross, and it feels almost too good to be true.
The London Wildlife Trust, who look after the space, describe it as a wonderland of “woodland, grassland and wetland habitats including ponds, reedbed and marshy areas” – making Camley Street Natural Park a surprisingly rural escape without ever leaving the city.
Brimming with wildlife, the park has been a beloved part of the local community since 1985, though its story stretches back much further. It was once part of the ancient Middlesex woodlands, sitting on the outskirts of London in the 17th century, before today finding itself an inner-city sanctuary.
The march of industrialisation eventually came for the Middlesex woodlands, making way for coal drops along the canal and the railway lines that linked London to the North. But thankfully, this pocket of nature remained intact.
This overlooked corner of Camden has had quite the comeback in recent decades. After falling into neglect, Camden Council – nudged along by a passionate campaign from the London Wildlife Trust – stepped in to protect the site from developers and turned it into an urban park instead.
A £2.5 million transformation completed in 2021 gave the two-hectare site a new lease of life, and it now has a cafe and learning centre alongside all the wildlife habitats you’d hope for.
Reflecting on the change, writer Patrick Barkham wrote: “The story of the park’s creation, survival and rebirth is a powerful example of the importance of urban havens for wildlife and people.”
A short Tube ride to King’s Cross drops you less than 10 minutes’ walk from this great little reserve. With ponds home to swans and the elusive kingfisher, reed beds alongside cherry trees, and even a secluded island, it’s not bad for a spot you can reach on the Underground.
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