Ambarrow Hill
| Ambarrow Hill | |
| Berkshire | |
|---|---|
| |
| Summit: | 312 feet SU825628 51°21’31"N, -0°48’59"W |
Ambarrow Hill is a minor hill in eastern Berkshire, rising to just 312 feet above sea level; a mump in Ambarrow Woods barely more than a hundred feet higher than the land of the surrounding towns. It stands between Sandhurst and Crowthorne, squashed between the A321 road and the Reading to Guildford railway line.
The top of the hill is a property of the National Trust, which preserves it from the relentless development which has swollen the commuter towns of east Berkshire. There is free access for the public to both the hill and to Ambarrow Court.
Ambarrow Court
On the south slope of the hill is Ambarrow Court, a Local Nature Reserve of 21.5 acres. The reserve was originally part of a Victorian country estate, around a house known as Ambarrow Court. The house has been demolished but the grounds remained as area of particular natural beauty, and have been acquired by the local council.
Habitats include ancient woodland, birch and hazel coppice, marsh, ponds and pools and a meadow. Notable plants include bluebells and spring woodland flowers, cuckoo flower and yellow rattle.
Insects and animals breeding in the reserve include stag beetle, noctule bat and glow worm.