SITE 210 BRIDGE CLOSE

Date: 6th August 2004

This visit was to plot the trees on paper and take photographs prior to measuring the following day.

Bridge Close is bordered on one boundary by the Rothley Brook, on two by the Bridle Road with a section by the new track to the farm, and on the remaining side by Site 209 Cecily Croft. There is a public footpath running across the middle of the site. It is currently used for horse grazing so the flora has no grazing regime.

It is called Bridge Close from the old maps, as there is a stone bridge from this site into the Cricket Ground Field Site 120. There is no public access over the bridge. Lord Macaulay's Carriageway ran through this field from fields from the old A6 to the Rothley Temple over the stone bridge. There is still a good line of Oaks in the fields, hence the historical value of many of these trees. The carriageway would have been in use in 1883 as it is shown on a map of his date so this could be an indicator of the tree planting.

7^th August 2004

I returned with Janice Verity to do the tree measurements in this site. There was only one Ash, Tree 308, all the remaining 22 trees were Oak, many of them measuring around 3.5 metres with 3 being classed as Ancient Trees.

Stints of the Rothley Ancient Temple Boundary runs through Bridge Close and part of a separate survey. Details below.

Tree number, OS Ref, Species, girth, Site 210 Bridge Close

308 581122 Ash 3.9 210 Bridge Close

309 581121 Oak 3.6 210 Bridge Close

310 581121 Oak 3.0 210 Bridge Close

311 581121 Oak 2.5 210 Bridge Close

312 581121 Oak 3.6 210 Bridge Close

313 581121 Oak 2.8 210 Bridge Close

314 580121 Oak 2.6 210 Bridge Close

315 580121 Oak 2.2 210 Bridge Close

316 580121 Oak 2.6 210 Bridge Close

317 580120 Oak 3.4 210 Bridge Close

318 580120 Oak 2.8 210 Bridge Close

319 580120 Oak 3.0 210 Bridge Close

320 582121 Oak 3.4 210 Bridge Close

321 581121 Oak 3.5 210 Bridge Close

322 581121 Oak 3.6 210 Bridge Close

323 581121 Oak 2.4 210 Bridge Close

324 581121 Oak 3.7 210 Bridge Close

325 581121 Oak 3.8 210 Bridge Close

326 581120 Oak 3.2 210 Bridge Close

327 581120 Oak 3.8 210 Bridge Close

328 582120 Oak 2.7 210 Bridge Close

329 582120 Oak 1.5 210 Bridge Close

330 582120 Oak 3.7 210 Bridge Close

RATS TEMPLE STINT 6

Date: 17th June 2009 and re-visited 17th March 2010.

Observers: Terry Sheppard and Marion Vincent

Location: Field accessed from Bridle Road from Town Green

OS Ref: SK5804012174-SK5807012155-SK5813712212

Map Title: Site 210 Bridge Close

Owners: Tony Cooper, Southfield Farm, Rothley

This stint crosses the old Stone Bridge, which is a listed monument, and at OS ref SK5807012155 immediately this side of it the boundary turns to run alongside the boundary of the Rothley Brook. Stint 6a is over the bridge and the remainder of this stint along the brook boundary. There is no real hedgerow, just a few stands of blackthorn which naturally spreads by suckering and two shrubby hawthorns. The end of Stint 6d does have a good sized Alder Tree.

At the end of Stint 6c there is a point where the remains of the original bridge can be seen in the far bank and some stonework still visible on the bank of Bridge Close.

Comment has to be made about the state of the old stone bridge at the start of this stint. It is now very overgrown with shrubs to the point where the stone work is showing signs of destruction. This is not a Public Footpath and I can understand the farmer not wanting to open it up but this is yet another Listed Monument suffering great neglect. At the time of our second visit on the 17th March 2010 there were stones on the ground from the bridge including the coping stone. It is very sad to see this neglect of our history.

We did a re-visit to take photographs as it was so difficult in June with the amount of vegetation. The photographs taken in March better reflect the ancient boundary.

This stint turns the corner just before the approach to the modern day bridge. The next stint heads for the old gate.

RATS TEMPLE STINT 7

Date: 17th June 2009 and 17th March 2010

Observers: Terry Sheppard and Marion Vincent

Location: Field accessed from the Bridle Road from Town Green

OS Ref: SK5813712212-SK5821512217

Map Title: Site 210 Bridge Close

Owner: Tony Cooper, Southfield Farm, Rothley

The end of the previous stint was on the boundary of Rothley Brook but we now cut across the corner of Bridge Close heading for the small gate beyond the current footpath stile. The point where we turn is at SK5817912196. Stint 7a is the meadow so no hedgerow but does end at an ancient Ash Tree 308 with a girth of 3.9 metres. This tree appears to stand on a mound with very exposed gnarled roots which raises the question of its base being washed away by water from time to time.

Stint 7b runs for 27 metres to the original gate with old iron hinges before it crosses the Bridle Road and enters yet more interesting landscape features.

The modern metal gate giving access to the public footpath was installed in 2009 to replace the wooden stile.

We re-visited this part of the Temple Boundary in March 2010 as the vegetation was difficult in June last year. We once again did photographs from the start of this stint, up to the old gate and over the Bridle Road. Stint 7b ended just in the ditch over the Bridle Road.

Stint 7c takes us into Site 224 Dye House Close and we curve around the corner of the field to meet up with the banks of Rothley Brook in Stint 7d. The small area of land just by the 'new' bridge over Rothley Brook planted as a small copse is not included in the Temple land. We are once again back to a hedgerow as our boundary and for a while we are running along the banks of Rothley Brook.

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