Calke Park Walk

This is an exhilarating walk through lovely countryside, visiting Calke Park, which was designated a National Nature Reserve by English Nature in 2004 and a Site of Special Scientific Interest in 1992. This route is roughly 4 miles in length and passes mostly through gentle parkland with only gentle gradients, making for an easy walk.

The key points of interest to look out for are:

• Staunton Harold Reservoir
  • Built between 1959 and 1964 to supply water to the Leicester area, and now serves as a site for leisure and a nature reserve. Please note that swimming in the reservoir isn’t allowed and dogs must be kept out of the water for their own safety.
• Ticknall and the Ticknall Limeyards
  • Ticknall Limeyards are currently a major home for wildlife within the area, but still serve as a monument to Ticknall’s industrial heritage.
• Ticknall Arch
  • Built as part of the construction of the Ticknall Tramway by Benjamin Outram, on behalf of the Ashby Canal Company, at the start of the 19th Century. It connects to the old brickworks north of the bridge and is one of the oldest railway bridges in the world.
  • The aforementioned Ticknall Tramway actually passes under Calke Park proper at the request of the Harpur-Crewe family, and passes through a tunnel that is roughly only one foot below the surface of the park.
• Calke Park
  • One the home of the Harpur-Crewe family, it was passed over to the National Trust and has become an iconic site in-and-of-itself being dubbed the ‘un-stately home’ due to being preserved in the state of disrepair it was in when handed over to the Trust.