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Summer Leys Nature Reserve Great Doddington

3.1 miles (5 km)

Ordnance Survey Map Open Streetmap This walk explores the Summer Leys Nature Reserve and the countryside around the village of Great Doddington near Wellingborough in Northamptonshire.
The reserve has some nice easy access trails taking your around wildlife rich wetlands and grassland.
After exploring the reserve you can head into the village of Great Doddington and pick up the Nene Way. This long distance waymarked footpath could be used to extend the route by heading south west along the riverside path towards Earls Barton. If you follow the river path north it will take you towards Irchester Country Park where there are some pleasant woodland walks to enjoy.

Postcode

NN29 7PT - Please note: Postcode may be approximate for some rural locations

Please click here for more information

Summer Leys OS Map Ordnance survey map - Mobile GPS OS Map with Location tracking

Summer Leys Open Street Map Open Streetmap - Mobile GPS Map with Location tracking

Further Information and Other Local Ideas

There are several other nature reserves to visit in the immediate area. Rushden Lakes, Stanwick Lakes and Titchmarsh Nature Reserve are all nearby and well worth a visit.
For more walking ideas in the area see the Northamptonshire Walks page.

Photos

Car park, Summer Leys Nature Reserve - geograph.org.uk - 1183648

Car park, Summer Leys Nature Reserve. The reserve is based on lagoons left from aggregate extraction.

Northern lagoon, Summer Leys Reserve - geograph.org.uk - 1183650

Northern lagoon. The view north from one of the many birdwatching hides. This one provides a good range of small birds in the scrubland in the foreground as well as longer views across the lagoon.

Butterfly Conservation Meadow - geograph.org.uk - 1183651

Butterfly Conservation Meadow. A variety of management techniques are used at Summer Leys Nature Reserve, including grazing and coppicing, to maintain a wide diversity of wildlife.

Summer Leys Nature Reserve - geograph.org.uk - 1352762

Summer Leys Nature Reserve

Weir for Wollaston Mill and lock - geograph.org.uk - 1183655

Weir for Wollaston Mill and lock. Located just to the west of the reserve. The weir maintains the level of the navigation channel for Wollaston Mill Lock, and would formerly have performed a similar function for the mill.

Hardwater Mill - geograph.org.uk - 130466

Hardwater Mill. Also just west of the reserve, this mill sits in a picturesque location on the River Nene.

Platelayers hut - geograph.org.uk - 1183657

Platelayers hut on the old railway on the western side of the site. This would have provided shelter for the lengthsman maintaining the railway track when this was still an operating railway. Note also the surviving traditional telegraph pole. The railway ran from Northampton to Peterborough.

High Street, Great Doddington - geograph.org.uk - 104867

High Street, Great Doddington

Video

GPS Files

GPX File

Summer Leys.gpx (On Desktop:Right Click>Save As. On Ipad/Iphone:Click and hold>Download Linked File)