University of York - Nice place for a walk

On Sunday afternoon the Mother and I headed up to Heslington to do a spot of geocaching* on the University of York campus while it was a little quieter than usual (or so we hoped). While a university might seem a rather unlikely place to go walking York uni campus is really nice for a stroll. Whenever I've been during the week there have always been loads of people around, not surprising as there are around 13000 students at the university, so if you're after a nice peaceful walk I'd suggest a Saturday. Sunday was surprisingly busy with lots of students dragging suitcases around after a weekend away from campus.

 The vast majority of the buildings on campus are far from picturesque, mostly 1960s concrete monstrosities, however there are a few which redeem it. Heslington Hall, for example, is a beautiful red brick building which, according to the University's website, is a modified  Elizabethan country house, rebuilt in the 20th century. Behind this building is a lovely garden (a hidden gem if you like) called 'The Quiet Place', describe as an area set aside for stillness and quiet. With its large hedges cut into unusual formations it put me in the mind of Alice in Wonderland. It was a shame to see discarded crisp packets and beer cans (and some even more undesirable items) tangled in the bowels of the bushes. Still, a rather mysterious, almost magical place nonetheless.

Hedges in 'The Quiet Place'

Another prominent feature is the lake which is home to several species of wildfowl (beware of droppings on the pavement) and there are boards to help you identify them. There's even a 'Duck of the Day' blog run by the university (http://www.duckoftheday.co.uk/). I found these Barnacle geese particularly charming; they look particularly dainty next to the more common Greylag and Canada geese.

Barnacle Geese at York Uni

Parking at the university is a bit of an issue. If you're lucky you can snag a place on the street near the bus stop by Derwent college where you can park for up to 2hrs Mon - Sat. There is a large pay and display car park at Campus North (around £1 an hour, if memory serves) but during the week it is rather busy. Parking in Heslington is pretty much a no go, but if you drive to the end of the main street and turn right at the mini roundabout there's a small car park for the sports field which seems to be free (I've not been in trouble for parking there to date anyway).

Final note: If you fancy geocaching there are 7 caches on campus and a further 3 in Heslington.

*Geocaching is a global treasure hunt where you use a GPS device to lead you to hidden caches (there are 325 within a 10mile radius of York) where you sign a log and can sometimes swap small items. Official website: www.geocaching.com