Riverside Nature Reserve

Visiting Riverside Nature Reserve

Riverside Nature Reserve is a 30 hectare wildlife haven. It is located in North East Guildford along the River Wey. The reserve supports many bird, amphibian and mammal species. The reserve consists of four main habitats: meadow, wetland, open water and woodland.

Location

on foot from Stoke Lock, Woking Road, GU1 1QE
on foot through Thorneycroft Wood (behind Spectrum Leisure Centre, Parkway) GU1 1UP
by car from Bowers Lane in Burpham, GU4 7ND

Things to see and do

enjoy views across the lake and reed bed
picnic tables
boardwalk routes to explore across the wetlands
birdwatching at the bird hide
feed the ducks on the main lake (frozen peas are best)
just before the sunset, look for bats eating midges

Please remember to follow the The Countryside Code (opens new window)

Conservation works

we have different mowing regimes on our grasslands. We use cattle grazing for habitat management
we cut informal paths through the grass sward to encourage visitors to stay on the paths
to keep our wetland habitat we remove invasive trees such as willow. If left, it would dry out the marsh

Parking

Riverside Nature Reserve car park is at the end of Bowers Lane.

A Green Flag site

Riverside Nature Reserve is a Green Flag award winner. The awards scheme is the national benchmark standard. It recognises well managed parks and green spaces. To win, green spaces must meet high standards and have excellent facilities. For further information and to find other Green Flag parks and open spaces, visit the Green Flag Award website (opens new window).

Management Plan

For a copy of the site management plan, please contact the Countryside team directly at countryside@guildford.gov.uk