Sulby Hedges Nature Trail Opened

On a beautiful, sunny day, 28th of September, the Heritage Lottery funded Sulby Hedges path was declared complete and open. It was celebrated with the participation of six primary schools and a home education group, undertaking investigations of the hedges, grasslands and dry pond under the direction of staff from the Open Air Laboratories division of the Field Studies Council under Louise Parker and of members of the Northamptonshire Natural History Society.

The Natural History Society has, through the services of Patricia Olive and John Smeathers, produced the explanatory text and detailed photographs for the information boards now installed so that the casual visitor can become aware of the richness of the wildlife in this lovely part of the Northamptonshire countryside.

The schools taking part were Welton, Loatlands, Ridgeway, East Haddon, Guilsborough and Naseby, and the IFLOW home education group also attended.

The official opening was undertaken by Mrs Jo Underwood, President of the Northamptonshire Natural History Society who spoke of their hopes for further cooperation with the Naseby Battlefield Project in placing more information points at other interesting places around the battlefield trail. She was speaking from the Sulby Hedges viewing platform, a key point I the story of the battle itself, overlooking the site of Colonel Okey’s action against the royalist cavalry on 14 June 1645.

The decisive battle of the English Civil War was fought in these fields and so a visit offers both military history, political history and natural history in a single location.