Pegsdon Hills and Hoo Bit

Pegsdon Hills

Pegsdon Hills - Robert Enderby

Steep hills and tranquil valleys in the Chilterns with magnificent views of the countryside

Location

South of Barton Road (B655),
Pegsdon,
Bedfordshire,
SG5 3GS
A static map of Pegsdon Hills and Hoo Bit

Know before you go

Size
79 hectares
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Entry fee

No

Grazing animals

Yes

Walking trails

Tracks and paths across the grassland can be steep and uneven

Access

Yes

Dogs

On a lead

When to visit

Opening times

Open at all times

Best time to visit

April to June, July to September, October to March

About the reserve

One of the jewels of the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, Pegsdon Hills’ steep chalk hills offer some of the best views in the county. In spring, moschatel, or town-hallclock, named after the arrangement of its flowers, can be found in the woodland, while dingy and grizzled skipper butterflies flutter around in the grassland. 

With summer arrives the smell of fresh herbs like wild thyme, marjoram and wild basil. The melodious song of the skylark is heard around the reserve. After dark the eerie green luminescence of glow-worms emanates from the grassland and bats fly overhead. Hoo Bit, once a larch plantation, is now a flower-rich grazed meadow, surrounded by woodland. White helleborine flowers in large numbers beneath the dense shade of beech trees. In autumn, honeysuckle, black bryony and old-man’s-beard drape over trees and shrubs offering seeds and berries to hungry birds and small mammals. 

In winter, fallow deer skirt along the woodland edge, while flocks of birds feed on seeds in hedgerow and field. We coppice in the wood and fell trees to allow light to reach the woodland floor. 

The deep earthwork on the Bedfordshire/Hertfordshire county boundary was once a barrier to free passage, situated as it is near to the ancient route of the Icknield Way. Large, multi-stemmed beech trees now mark its presence. Strip lynchets, or cultivation terraces, are evidence of an ancient settlement and there is a series of small quarries indicating former small-scale mineral extraction. 

The grassland is grazed and we remove scrub to prevent succession. 

Additional information

  • We have work parties for the North Chilterns Chalk nature reserves. See the Bedfordshire work party page for more information. 
  • Scroll down to see the reserve boundary. Please note the boundary map is for indication purposes only and does not show the Wildlife Trusts definitive land boundary. 

FOR ANY MEDIA ENQUIRIES PLEASE CONTACT OUR COMMUNICATIONS TEAM:   communicationsteam@wildlifebcn.org or 01954 713500 and ask for comms team.

Contact us

Reserves Manager
Contact number: 01234 364213

Environmental designation

Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI)

Location map

Betony at Upwood Meadows June  - c. Robert Enderby

Betony at Upwood Meadows June  - c. Robert Enderby

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