Three Brooks Nature Reserve
Three Brooks Reserve
The Three Brooks Nature Reserve is the gem of Bradley Stoke. At 110 acres (roughly 62 football pitches) it provides a biologically diverse, green space for the community. The history of the reserve may be less well-known and I for one originally assumed it was contemporary with the 1980's commencement of home building. Whilst that's true, the reserve does enclose areas with much longer histories.
Is three the magic number? As its name suggests the reserve includes three brooks - Patchway Brook, Bradley Brook and Stoke Brook - but also three woods: Webb's Wood, Savage's Wood and Sherborne's Brake. The name Four Brooks Nature Reserve is, perhaps, more appropriate though as the Southern end of what is today Patchway Brook was once called Hortham Brook. In 2007 a small Community Orchard was also planted; located in the heart of the reserve and just to the East of Bradley Stoke Community School. So, technically, the magic number is four!
Webb's Wood is on the North side of Stoke Brook near the lake and is probably the oldest wood within the reserve. Sherbourne's Brake sits at the South Western edge of the reserve near the junction between Braydon Avenue, Brook Way and Orpheus Avenue and is considered to be roughly 200 years old. Today Savage's Wood covers the largest area, contains a small pond and the tallest trees.
The National Library of Scotland has an excellent website that allows maps from different times to be overlaid and their transparency adjusted to enable easy comparison. Comparing a modern map against, for example, the an Ordnance Survey Six inch map from 1888 - 1913 identifies just how much has changed and, very surprisingly, how much has remained the same with many old field boundaries still delineating either housing developments or modern roads. Be warned tho. Comparing current-day features with a previous era is a wonderfully engrossing journey into history!
The Community Orchard
As a UK landscape/nature photographer who has lived in Bradley Stoke for 20+ years the reserve provides me with a local space that is easily accessible were I can relax, exercise and just be outdoors. Certainly, during the last couple of years and the various pandemic restrictions its been a great resource which I know is appreciated by many more in the community than it was prior to 2020. Sometime in the summer of 2020 I recall speaking to someone who confessed, that although she knew the lake and reserve existed, she had never before visited. Perhaps that's a benefit of the pandemic, we were all forced to explore our local communities a little more.
The Tump
One of my favourite parts of the reserve is the Tump. It's a man-made hill created from the spoil of the second Severn crossing, now known as The Prince of Wales bridge. From the surrounding area it's an unassuming little hillock, something you hardly notice but climb to the top and you get some great and quite different views across Bradley Stoke and Gloucestershire over to the Southern edge of the Cotswolds. A little height makes a big difference!
Walking on the Tump is always interesting. In places, due to weather and human activity its surface is gradually eroding and, as it does, objects are starting to surface. I've certainly noticed a small vehicle tyre emerging from the ground a little more as each year passes and there are also items I don't quite yet recognise! There is something that looks like the top - perhaps a rocker cover - of an engine as well as more identifiable objects such as stone piping and bricks. Please don't get the impression it looks like a rubbish tip tho; it has been left alone and its top is now a grassland home to wildlife comprising a few trees and lots of wild flowers - Red Campion, Wood Anemone and Ragwort to name a few.
Wild Flowers near The Tump
In addition to the main path on its Western side, there is a small path from its North-East corner. This path winds its way North through the woods between the M4 motorway and Patchway Brook passing the junction with Hortham Brook before finally emerging at the stone bridge crossing Patchway Brook. It's a less trodden and probably lesser known path but a great path nonetheless as it provides a wonderful alternative to the well-trodden, motorway that is the main stoney path to its West.
Webb's Wood is another of my favourite spots; perhaps because the bluebells were in full-swing when I first visited, perhaps because its so easily missed when passing along the well-worn track to/from the lake. On casual glance it appears to be no more than a few trees by the side of Stoke Brook but force yourself off the track and into the wood and you'll discover a really pretty little wood with some of the best bluebells in the reserve. Continue through the wood to it's East-side and you find a hidden, almost secret little clearing.
Looking after our reserve is the Three Brooks Nature Conservation Group and their working-parties are sometimes seen managing the reserve. If you would like to assist I'm sure they would be grateful. See links below.
I've illustrated this article with photographs captured during the last few years in the reserve. The image grid below contains the images used above plus others which didn’t fit within the text. Click on images to see the full-size version. To see my photographic work from around the UK please visit Andy Gawthrope Photography.
Andy
All images are Copyright Andy Gawthrope Photography.
References
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/threebrooksncg/Three Brooks Nature Conservation Group: https://three-brooks.infoThree Brooks Nature Reserve: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Brooks_Local_Nature_ReserveThe National Library of Scotland (Bradley Stoke Mapping): https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/#zoom=16&lat=51.53401&lon=-2.54883&layers=6&b=1Andy Gawthrope Photography: https://www.andygawthrope.photography