Astley Park is steeped in history and fascinating features for visitors to discover. Some artifacts have only recently been found such as  The Lost Fountain discovered by Friends’ volunteers in 2016 and restored by us shortly afterwards. However, human use of the land that now comprises the Park dates back over 3000 years; that is all explained in  A Short History of Astley Park

The main architectural heritage feature of the Park is of course Astley Hall itself. However, there are also many smaller artifacts that are fascinating in their own right and these are compiled in the Curiosities of Astley Park

A good way to view the various features in the Park is to take a walk along  The Astley Park Trail  This is a waymarked route that takes about an hour to fully complete but can be done in parts on surfaced paths that avoid flights of steps.

In early springtime The Snowdrop Trail is a great way to view the 20,000 flowering bulbs that Friends volunteers have planted, again the route is waymarked and takes about 20 minutes to walk.

In 2012 there was a second recent occurrence of the otherwise rare solar system event when the planet Venus passed in front of the Sun as seen from the Earth. This was observed at the time in the Park and continues to be marked today with round ‘planet stones’ laid in the ground along the side of the Park’s main path. All is explained in the Jeremiah Horrocks and the Transits of Venus article.

The Park is also noted for its plant and animal life. Trees are a prominent feature, both as extensive woodland and individual specimens. An Astley Park Tree Trail is being produced with a route that links together a wide range of native and, introduced to Britain, examples of fine trees. An article about the Tree Trail will be published here on this website later in 2024.

A variety of species of bats live within the Park and can best be seen late on calm, fine, summer evenings. Each year we engage the services of a bat expert who explains the characteristics of the species and how best to observe them. The Bat Talks and Walks article provides more details and the dates when these events for small groups of people are planned this year.