Shipley Country Park - From Mapperley - Part 02
w/e 06 September 2015
All of this week's pictures were taken with a Kodak DX6490

At the start of the second part of this 2.5 mile walk mainly in Shipley Country Park we are a little further along Bell Lane heading towards Derby Lodge.

Shipley Park

Having already passed a track towards Flat Meadow Farm we have now reached another path on the left which, if followed without deviating along many other paths in the park, leads directly to the Visitor Centre.
Tom Duro Orchard

We continued along Bell Lane however but turned off to the right into the Tom Duro Orchard just before reaching the Lodge, the roof of which was visible over the hedge which runs along Shipley Lane.
Butterfly Stump

Closer inspection of the tree stump seen in the previous picture shows that it has been carved with a butterfly design and also bears a plaque that reads as follows:

The Tom Duro Orchard 2010
This orchard is planted to celebrate the life of Tom who was a
dedicated natural historian of Shipley Park and a long serving member of the
Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire Entomological Society
Orchard Path

We followed the path parallel to Shipley Lane through the orchard slowing ascending Shipley Hill.
Flat Meadow Farm

The path joins Shipley Lane via a number of gates opposite the entrance to the former Home Farm which has now been converted into residential properties but looking back down the hill we could see the hedge and tree line in the middle distance that delineates Bell Lane and a little further on, the buildings at Flat Meadow Farm.
Through The Trees

We could have continued climbing the hill by following Shipley Lane all the way back to Mapperley from here but instead followed a path through the trees that runs a little lower down the hillside.

Opencast Working

A steady drone of machinery had accompanied us all through the walk and from this path the cause of it was clearly visible beyond Bell Lane where opencast work is in progress.
Across The Valley

The path swings round to rejoin Shipley Lane which drops down the hill to the reservoir before rising on the other side of the valley into Mapperley Village which is visible from here in the distance.
Barriers

A wide grass verge separated from the lane by a fence, runs down the hill as far as the reservoir car park where there is a series of barriers and gates for vehicles, horses and walkers respectively.
Ilkeston

From here and actually all down the hill, the tower of St Mary's Church and the spire of the United Reformed Church a couple of miles away in Ilkeston, stand out on the horizon and are seen here in a zoomed shot over the intervening countryside and rooftops.
Mapperley Reservoir

This final shot from our walk is from the dam wall looking down the length of the Mapperley Reservoir but it was the flowers (weeds?) growing up from the dam wall that caught my eye. All that remained from here was to follow Shipley Lane back up the hill into the village to complete the circuit.
Click here to see an aerial view of the complete route.
Back to Part 01

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