CS Lewis Nature Reserve

A tranquil woodland, CS Lewis Nature Reserve contains a large pond full of aquatic plants and toads that migrate to spawn here.

Location

Lewis Close, Risinghurst

Oxford

Oxfordshire

OX3 8JD

OS Map Reference

SP 560 067

View on What3Words

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Know before you go

Size

3 hectares

Entry fee

Parking information

Street parking

Walking trails

Wildlife Walk around reserve

Access

Steep slopes, uneven in places, wet patches; gates

Dogs

On a lead

When to visit

Opening times

Open at all times

Best time to visit

March to November

About the reserve

Ash dieback

Diseased ash trees can become very unstable. The Berks, Bucks and Oxon Wildlife Trust is employing specialist contractors to fell diseased trees where they pose a risk to public safety. The work is being timed to minimise the impact on wildlife. Trees have been surveyed and where possible important bird and bat habitat will be retained. To minimise the number of trees we need to remove and to ensure the safety of visitors, some paths or areas of the reserve will be closed.

To find out more read our ash dieback FAQ

Community nature reserve
This tranquil woodland and large pond used to belong to celebrated Oxford author CS Lewis. It was said he enjoyed wandering here while writing his children's book series about Narnia which includes The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. With the A40 nearby and surrounded by houses, it is a surprise that the reserve has kept its sense of stillness.

Fun for children
It is not just the literary associations which have brought countless children back here time and time again. This BBOWT community nature reserve has been used for field study trips and pond dipping by young people since 1969.

Wildlife highlights
The pond, a flooded Victorian clay pit, is full of aquatic plants. Toads migrate here to spawn in spring and there are fascinating displays of dragonflies and damselflies in summer. Moorhens and coots regularly nest here. The steeply rising woodland has a canopy of beech, oak, birch, alder, ash and hawthorn. In spring, the reserve is full of birdsong. Look out for large boulders known as 'sandstone doggers' on slopes in the trees. Where springs arise, giant horsetail grows in the wet ground.