 New Hall Valley 
Exercise, Fresh Air & Beautiful Scenery
View Map
Recommendation added: 28/01/2007 18:20
By: dewberry (YSUK rating +704)dewberry has been thanked 10 times for this contribution
"This morning, out of boredom more than anything, we decided to try a new country park which opened in Sutton Coldfield a couple of years ago. New Hall Valley Country Park covers nearly 200 acres of green belt land and is a haven for wildlife and an amazing range of plants and flora species.
My first impression when we arrived was how quiet and tranquil the place was; crisscrossed by cycle lanes and pretty lanes to walk down, there's none of the uniformity I was expecting from such a recent development. It's so green, perhaps to be expected, with lots and lots of open land ringed by trees of all ages and sizes. You can see much of the park as soon as you enter because of the hilly lay of the land, although there's much more that you can't see so be prepared to have a good walk around to take in as much of the park as you possibly can.
The first area we headed for was the wetland which was somewhat boggy thanks to the immense amount of rain we've had in Brum over the past few weeks, but a very pretty part of the park. As the name suggests, this area has lots of unusual plants which thrive in such a damp place and I can imagine in the summer this would be a riot of colour as they all come into bloom. As it is, in dull January, a lot of the plants have small blooms and generally look attractive in such an untended environment.
The grazing and wildflower meadows are absolutely gorgeous areas, two huge meadows dedicated to the kind of wild plants which won't grow with TLC – they prefer to be left to their own devices and will thrive without the kind of care usually given to such beautiful flora. Because a lot of New Hall Valley is situated over old farmland the ground is perfect for these kind of plants and the whole area looked lush and green; beautiful in a higgledy piggledy kinda way. I love wildflowers because they just look like they don't give a damn, and in this place they're no different. Every conceivable space in the wildflower meadow is taken up with pretty flowers and plants which give visitors from the city a much needed dose of 'countryside' prettiness. Even though this area LOOKS to be neglected and left alone, it's obvious by the health and general gorgeousness of the plants that it's actually well tended by the various gardeners and rangers in the park.
The grazing meadow is pretty much made up of grass and mossy slopes and is wonderfully relaxing to walk through – there are no animals there at the moment but the City Council are hoping to purchase a herd of cows to graze the meadow in the near future which will be an absolute boon to the park. The meadow has a ring of massive old trees around the perimeter and you reach it via a lovely little pathway, once inside this 'ring' I felt completely cut off from the outside world with even traffic noise being muted as though it were coming from a very long way away.
The entire Country Park is, in fact, lovely. I loved the greenness of the place and also the fact that visiting a place like this is an excellent chance to breathe some fresh air and take some exercise without it ever feeling like you're being 'healthy'! The children particularly enjoyed the brilliant kiddies play area which is a biggish section of the park created for younger visitors to have a run around. The slide, tyre swings and monkey bars went down a treat with the kids – and the nearby benches went down a treat with us adults!
When you reach the outskirts of the park you'll see some old privately owned buildings, unfortunately you're not allowed to wander into the grounds of these but they provide a gorgeous backdrop to the park and can be a useful reference point should you get lost! The largest building you can see looks wonderfully majestic rising above the trees and it really dominates the beautiful landscape.
There are a number of cycle paths and pretty footpaths which take meandering route (although not necessarily the most direct) through the park, linking the different areas. The areas are signed as you get near and each time the paths cross there is a clear signpost telling you which direction to go if you want to get to, say, the wetlands or grazing meadow. On the whole I'd say the park is pretty easy to navigate and is better (I think) when you've not made any plan, then you can just go with the flow and follow a random path for half an hour.
There's loads of different wildlife in the park; my ten year old is nuts about animals and always finds a ranger to ask what to look out for when we visit places like this. The ranger she pestered today was an older guy with an obvious passion for wildlife. He pointed out a bird in the far distance which was, apparently, one of our larger birds of prey and showed her a nest in the bushes of the wetlands, explaining about the bird (I don't know what it was!) who made the nest. If you look carefully there's a chance you'll see water voles, kingfishers, foxes, badgers and a host of other creatures, both usual and unusual! Whatever's there they were all in bed this morning and all we saw were some pretty standard looking sparrow types and a squirrel, but the signs of wildlife are everywhere.
I'd say the park is pretty accessible for wheelchair users, although because of the natural environment there are obviously certain pathways and areas which aren't ideal for visitors with mobility problems. Likewise prams and pushchairs can be a bit of a hindrance if you're wanting to have a good old explore, the only pram I saw outside of the play area was holding a chunky 2 year old and being carried by two blokes built like wrestlers! So if you're planning on bringing your little immobile darling to New Hall Valley make sure you bring a couple of strong guys with you!
The large car park is free to use and provides a wide choice of paths to take to begin your walk; there's a fairly detailed map situated at the front of the main entrance which makes it simple to work out where you are and which direction to take for the different points of interest within the country park.
To find New Hall Valley Country Park by car you need to head into Sutton Coldfield town centre and follow the A453 Jockey Road, turn right at the Sutton Park Hotel onto Birmingham Road. Follow this for about a mile then turn left onto Wylde Green Road and the main entrance to the park is on your left. By bus, if you're visiting from Birmingham City Centre you'll need to jump on the 107 into Sutton Coldfield and then look out for a bus to take you to Fox Hollies – a five minute walk later and you'll be in the park.
New Hall Valley Country Park
Wylde Green Road
Sutton Coldfield
Birmingham
B76 1QT
Tel – 0121 3556370 (Sutton Park enquiry office)"
Was this recommendation useful?
|
;)
