Cotgrave Country Park

WHAT IT’S LIKE

200 acres of former colliery land turned into woods, lakes and meadows, free to explore on foot, bike or horseback, with den-building areas for kids.

Cotgrave Country Park is a 200-acre green space in Nottinghamshire built on the site of the former Cotgrave Colliery, with landscaped grassland, woodland, lakes and wetland to explore on foot, by bike or on horseback. There are waymarked routes and eight orientation boards dotted along popular paths describing features like Heron Lake and the wildflower meadows, plus a network of paths good for walking, cycling and fishing, and a canal towpath (the Grantham Canal) running through the middle. For kids there are den-building areas in the woods that volunteers keep safer by clearing dead branches, plenty of wildlife to spot (deer, foxes, rabbits, herons, kestrels, and even bats at dusk), and free downloadable nature activity sheets for different seasons to turn a walk into a scavenger hunt. A separate dog pond (built 2012) keeps dogs away from the more sensitive wildlife lakes. The Friends of Cotgrave Country Park, a volunteer charity working with Nottinghamshire County Council, run a free Family Fun Day each summer with stalls, face painting and crafts, plus guided walks (wildflower, fungi, bat walks) and task days if you fancy getting involved in conservation work. There's no stated admission charge for using the park itself, and it's designed for casual visits on foot, bike or horseback rather than as a staffed attraction with facilities like cafés, bring what you need, as the group also encourages avoiding single-use plastics when packing for a visit.