About the reserve

The future's green

The park is part of the important green corridor along the Lower Aire Valley and, as with many other local reserves, it has been reclaimed from industry for nature - a transformation that began in the late 1970s.

Managed in partnership with Leeds City Council, who own the site, the reserve - the site of a former colliery - offers a patchwork of different habitats to explore, including young woodland, meadows, hedgerows and wetland.

The Coronation and Eshald Lane Meadows are rewilding rapidly, with the latter now able to boast 31 species of wildflower. Taking the trail through the Eshald Lane Wood brings you out behind football pitches onto a grassy pasture with growing trees, where you may see deer, willow tits and jays. It's a great place to see bats if you're there at dusk. Keep an eye out for hunting tawny owls and kestrels. 

Between the canal and the railway, a flood alleviation scheme to help protect nearby homes features wet woodland. Walking along the riverside, you can see orange-tip butterflies and banded demoiselle damselflies fluttering around, with kingfishers and cormorants on the river itself. 

Meeting the wildlife on your doorstep

As well as providing great habitats for wildlife, this is a valuable recreational space, where people can experience and enjoy nature close to home. In spring and summer, the wildflowers are beautiful, and there are birds to see all year round, such as long-tailed, great, blue and willow tits in the woodlands, and birds of prey including red kites, buzzards, and even marsh harriers. There's a chance of happening across an otter on the canal and perhaps a field vole moving in the meadow.