Interesting Places
Here are some random sample locations of interest in Essex. Also take a look at sites shown on our sites map, geology site map and brownfield site map, with the site account and locate site facility.
locate Fingringhoe Wick
The Essex Wildlife Trust's flagship reserve, disused gravel workings overlooking the Colne estuary.
locate Bushy Hill, South Woodham Ferrers
A remarkable south facing landslip scarp with some rare invertebrates.
locate Broaks Wood
Forestry Commission woodland open to the public.
locate Blue House Farm, North Fambridge
Essex Wildlife Trust coastal grazing marsh reserve. Situated along the banks of the River Crouch at North Fambridge. It is bordered by the river to the south, Wild and Ulens Farms to the north (beyond the Wickford-Southminster railway line), Bridgemarsh Island (saltings) to the east and Fambridge village and Fleet Farm to the west.
locate Heydon Roadverge
Calcareous grassland verge with rich flora, a small oasis in an arable landscape. A nearby small chalk pit is also important at approx. TL432409. Although in modern Cambridgeshire, these are both in Vice County 19 (North Essex).
locate Goshems Farm, Tilbury
This is the site of a very old landfill site dating back to Victorian times. It is highly probable that tipping ceased in 1958 when a change in ownership occurred. There was a long continuity of cattle grazing until at least 1997, as indicated by the presence of an important population of the UKBAP Hornet Robber Fly, discovered in the mid 1990s. The sandy shoreline is unprecedented as a habitat in the Thames estuary, together with a section of low chalky cliff.
locate Hales Wood
Hales Wood is an ancient, coppice-with-standards wood situated on the Chalky Boulder Clay of north-west Essex. It supports a rich assemblage of plants and animals, including the Oxlip.
locate The Dell, built by Alfred Russel Wallace
Alfred Russel Wallace was elected an honorary member of the Essex Field Club at the inaugural meeting of the Club in 1880. He lived in The Dell between 1872 and 1876. See also The Alfred Russel Wallace Memorial Fund website and Thurrock Local History Society website for more information.