It’s proved to be one of our favourite green spaces to explore this year but did you realise that as well as stretching your legs at Nene Park you could also fill your Christmas stocking?
Nene Park’s Visitor Centre and Gift Shop is packed with great gifts and when the actual shop isn’t open you can also shop online at www.nenepark.org.uk/shop.
We’re encouraging everyone to buy local and support our economy closer to home where possible and having taken a look at the great range of gifts in the shop, and on the website, we think there’s pretty much something for everyone… including your pet!
So let’s ditch the usual gift sets and Quality Street and pop something under the tree that’s a little different and supports Peterborough.
For wildlife lovers there’s everything from binoculars to bird feeders or why not get the kids to build their own bug house or play Bird Bingo at home?
It wouldn’t be Christmas without some tasty treats so you can try Norfolk made Gnaw chocolate, biscuits, a range of preserves and there’s a great range of locally brewed ales, gin and wines available.
There are also some lovely glasses to drink them out of too!
For pet lovers there’s a really gorgeous range of mugs, food bowls, candles and soaps as well as a range of toys and treats for your pooch to nibble on.
For the green minded who are keen to do their bit for the environment there’s an Eco range of products for cleaning the house or beauty products for treating yourself to some TLC along with seed bombs and bug hotels to encourage wildlife.
There are candles through to cuddly toys and whether you know a gardener, a cook, dog walker, bird watcher or have kids eager to learn there’s loads to choose from either in the shop itself or online at
Once you’ve been in the shop of course there are acres of outdoor spaces around Nene Park to explore and get some fresh air and exercise even when it’s chilly.
Although the Nene Outdoors Watersports and Activity Centre will be closed for public drop-in Pay & Play activities until early March, they can still accommodate bookings made in advance for watersports, tuition and private launch. Please contact the team at nene.outdoors@neneparktrust.org.uk or call 01733 234193 to make an enquiry.
There are still plenty of ways to enjoy what the Park has to offer in the winter months, and one way to step out and explore is by following one of their new virtual guided walks.
There’s so much more to Nene Park than Ferry Meadows – 1,750 acres in fact – and so there’s a new initiative, virtual guided walks, designed to help visitors explore further without having to go on a guided walk led by a ranger, which are currently cancelled due to social distancing requirements.
Each virtual walk published on their website has a route guide available to download containing a brief overview of the walk and a basic route map. Along the walking route they’re placing route markers featuring QR codes. You can then scan the QR codes using your phone or tablets to access a short video giving information about points of interest and route guidance for the next stage of the walk.
Most smartphones already have a QR code reader installed and for those that don’t, applications such as Google Lens are freely available to download.
You can also check out the photography exhibition alongside the path between the Visitor Centre and Badger Play Park, which features images of the Park taken by local people which were entered into their monthly photography competition. Some of these are featured in their fundraising calendar which is £8.99 from the Visitor Centre & Gift Shop or online shop.
Gift and shop photos: Emma Bothamley for ESP
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