Eight of us assembled at the little car park off Crabtree Lane, Westhumble, to explore the very large but (by most) little-known Norbury Park. This site was bought by Surrey County Council before WW2 to spare it from development. It remains as a publicly owned gem, sitting opposite Box Hill in the Mole Gap, and is now managed by Surrey Wildlife Trust.
Our purpose today was not official recording, but getting the feel of the place for those who don’t, or hardly know it. To see it all would take a day, so we visited only a few key areas. We took some time getting out of the car park as it was edged with brambles in bloom, attracting a host of butterflies, including silver-washed fritillary, meadow brown, large skipper, ringlet, and speckled wood. As we moved off northwards we added holly blue and female brimstone to our list.
Our first target today was Druids’ Grove, a locally famous landmark group of ancient yews, of which at least a dozen are accessible via the 'Druids’ Walk', a narrow but mostly level path. Many are distinctive and have been given fanciful names. At the far end we came out onto a superb viewpoint, where we sat contemplating the Mole Gap and Box Hill, and the mansions visible in the distance.
Continuing northwards, we passed the Surrey Wildlife Trust’s sawmill, where a range of products are made from locally grown wood. Garden furniture is made for public sale, and much of SWT’s requirement for signs, benches, etc. is met by this unit. It is open to the public on a few days each year.
Beyond, the path leads out onto open chalk grassland, very dry underfoot today, but alive with marbled white butterflies, a wonderful show. Flying with them were small and Essex skippers, and six-spot burnet moths. Our botanists noted lady’s bedstraw, cow parsley, greater and lesser knapweed, calamint, marjoram, pyramidal orchid, mignonette, harebell, perforate St John's wort and pale St John’s wort. We couldn’t find the adder’s-tongue fern, which grows here.
We waited patiently to cross the pasture behind Gamekeeper’s Cottage, while the tenant farmer rounded up and weighed his lambs. He gave us an interesting insight into the difficulties that the dry spring and lack of grass were causing to farmers. His job finished, we were able to cross to the little ‘shaw’, or narrow shelter belt of woodland beyond, which contains some nice old trees. The corner marker is an old parish boundary yew, and there are fine cherries and ash. Below we saw the dried-up remains of orchids, thought to be fly orchid.
After a wander through Blackberry Wood, we regained the path back to the car park, and departed after a gentle three-hour stroll.
DICK ALDER