About Hounslow Heath
The original Hounslow Heath once stretched right across the borough but what remains of it is now an important nature reserve site with a range of habitats making it home to newts, rabbits, adders, kestrels, and lizards.
Hounslow Heath has a rich history, it was the staging point for Charles I’s troops during the English Civil War, the haunt of highwaymen and footpads, where the baseline for the first Ordnance Survey was established, a training ground for the cavalry based at Hounslow Barracks and, after 1914, home to Hounslow Heath Aerodrome.
A popular spot for walking, cycling, picnicking and wildlife watching, along the west of the Heath runs the River Crane which can be followed north or south to other green spaces in the borough and beyond. A series of markers take you through the history of the Heath as you hike.
The Heath also boasts five ponds and a wetland area, recreational grassland suitable for games, and a variety of habitats including a lake, wildflower meadows, heathland, meadow grass, woodland, wetland, scrub and reedbeds, bridlepath.
Hounslow Heath Conservation Volunteers hold regular clean-up and habitat protection sessions and are always looking for more participants.
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