California Country Park

Country park in Berkshire, England

Longmoor Lake at California Country Park

California Country Park is a 100-acre (40 ha) country park covering Long Moor at California, Berkshire, England. It consists of lowland heath and bogland, including Longmoor Bog, a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and Local Nature Reserve.[1][2] The park is managed by Wokingham Borough Council and is open every day throughout the year.

## Geography

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The country park is situated approximately 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) south of Wokingham and is bounded by Arborfield Garrison to the west, California to the east, the Nine Mile Ride to the south, and what was once Barkham common to the north. The site covers 150 acres (61 ha) features a six-acre (2.4 ha) lake.[3]

The park features a ferruginous swamp, Longmoor Bog, caused by a bacterium that deposits rust-coloured iron hydroxide.[4]

## History

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In 1931, it was established as an amusement park and zoo by Alfred Cartilage and was called 'California in England'.[5] Cartilage built the park so that he could use his Teddington-based Charabanc compan to take parties of people from London to the countryside.[6] The miniature railway was initially laid out to ten and a quarter inch (260 mm) gauge but was soon changed to 18 inch (460 mm) and this lasted until the outbreak of the Second World War when the park closed and all the buildings were used for the manufacture of munitions for the aircraft industry.[6] Cartilage reopened the park after the war and set about developing the rides many of which were designed and built onsite, including the Snake Train. The railway was re-established as 18 inch gauge using a petrol-powered locomotive. His son, Norman, took over in the early 1950s and continued the development of the site. At this time, the original miniature railway terminus station was moved to the outer north-western edge of the extended play and rides area. The track was extended across the bog and had a point installed with the intention of constructing a loop. Trackwork was never completed beyond the apex of the loop, and it is here that after the park closed the last loco on the line was run off into the swamp.[citation needed] The cleared area between the railway and the original rides was developed with extra rides. There was a small carousel, a full size chairoplane, climbing frame, swing boats, and a concrete oval track. The latter was initially intended for petrol driven go-karts but these were replaced by children's pedal cars of the Austin J40 and Pathfinder type. The removal of the original railway station opened up access to a further area of scrub which was cleared to provide a site for a circus which operated each summer for several years. The Art Deco main building, built around 1937, included a sprung glass-floored ballroom over the restaurant.[6] This structure was destroyed by fire in 1976.[citation needed]

From the 1930s to the 1950s the park was home to a speedway track. The Reading and District Motor Club ran a series of meetings in 1939, on the dirt track laid out in a remote corner of the estate.[7] Later from 1954 to 1956, a local speedway team, the California Poppies, rode on the track.[8]

In the early 1960s the amusement business was failing and the site obtained new owners who turned it into a holiday camp. Caravan and camping facilities are still available on site at the California Chalet and Touring Park but the main part of the original amusement area is within the country park and now largely overgrown.[citation needed]

## Fauna

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The park has the following animals[9][10]

### Birds

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* Cormorant
* Canada goose
* Mallard
* Coot
* Moorhen
* Swan
* Egyptian goose

### Invertebrates

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* Bog bush cricket
* Common Copper Butterfly
* Dragonfly
* Damselfly

### Reptiles

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* Vipera berus

### Amphibian

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* Palmate newt

## Flora

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The park has the following flora:[9][10][11]

### Trees

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* Alnus glutinosa
* Rowan
* Quercus robur
* Hazel
* Aspen

### Plants

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* Mentha pulegium
* Centaurea nigra
* Rorippa palustris
* Circaea lutetiana
* Molinia caerulea
* Juncus effusus
* Juncus acutiflorus
* Juncus inflexus
* Calluna
* Potentilla erecta
* Lotus pedunculatus
* Potamogeton polygonifolius
* Carex rostrata
* Cirsium palustre
* Equisetum fluviatile
* Iris pseudacorus
* Angelica sylvestris
* Lycopus europaeus
* Dactylorhiza fuchsii
* Frangula alnus
* Dryopteris dilatata
* Blechnum spicant
* Glyceria declinata
* Menyanthes
* Lythrum salicaria
* Ranunculus flammula
* Hypericum pulchrum
* Persicaria maculosa
* Stellaria graminea
* Epilobium parviflorum
* Gnaphalium uliginosum
* Achillea ptarmica
* Typha latifolia
* Alisma plantago-aquatica
* Impatiens glandulifera
* Rhododendron

### Bryophyte

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* Sphagnum

### Lichen

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* Peltigera membranacea

## Facilities

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As well as offering walks and wildlife watching, especially around Longmoor Lake, there is a cafe, summer paddling pool, toddler swings and an adventure play area. A 5k parkrun started on 23 February 2019 and takes place every Saturday at 9.00am.[12]

## See also

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* List of Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Berkshire

## References

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1. ^ "Longmoor Bog citation" (PDF). Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Archived (PDF) from the original on 30 March 2014.
2. ^ "Map of Longmoor Bog". Local Nature Reserves. Natural England.
3. ^ "California Country Park - Country / Royal Park in Finchampstead, Wokingham - South East England". Visitsoutheastengland.com. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
4. ^ "California Country Park, Berkshire". A family day out. 23 August 2014. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
5. ^ "The true story of Berkshire's California". Wokingham Remembers. 24 July 2015. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
6. ^ a b c "Letter to Wokingham Post" (PDF). Retrieved 29 January 2017.
7. ^ "memoire-t_stubberfield-02". Arborfield-september49ers.co.uk. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
8. ^ "California in England". Defunct Speedway. Retrieved 7 September 2023.
9. ^ a b "Natural England - Special Sites". Lnr.naturalengland.org.uk. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
10. ^ a b "California Country Park – 20 August 2016 « Reading & District Natural History Society". Rdnhs.org.uk. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
11. ^ "Natural England - Designated Sites View". Lnr.naturalengland.org.uk. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
12. ^ "California Country parkrun". parkrun UK. Retrieved 4 March 2020.

## External links

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Wikimedia Commons has media related to California Country Park.

* California Country Park
* Defunct speedway tracks - California Speedway

51°22′46″N 0°52′28″W﻿ / ﻿51.3795°N 0.8745°W﻿ / 51.3795; -0.8745

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Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Berkshire

Biological|

* Aldermaston Gravel Pits
* Ashridge Wood
* Avery's Pightle
* Bisham Woods
* Blackwater Valley
* Bowdown and Chamberhouse Woods
* Boxford Water Meadows
* Bray Meadows
* Bray Pennyroyal Field
* Briff Lane Meadows
* Broadmoor to Bagshot Woods and Heaths
* Catmore and Winterly Copses
* Chawridge Bourne
* Cleeve Hill
* Cock Marsh
* Combe Wood and Linkenholt Hanging
* Coombe Wood, Frilsham
* Croker's Hole
* Decoy Pit, Pools and Woods
* Easton Farm Meadow
* Enborne Copse
* Englemere Pond
* Freeman's Marsh
* Great Thrift Wood
* Greenham and Crookham Commons
* Heath Lake
* Hog's Hole
* Holies Down
* Inkpen and Walbury Hills
* Inkpen Common
* Inkpen Crocus Field
* Irish Hill Copse
* Kennet and Lambourn Floodplain
* Kennet Valley Alderwoods
* King's Copse
* Lardon Chase
* Lodge Wood and Sandford Mill
* Longmoor Bog
* Old Copse, Beenham
* Park Farm Down
* Redhill Wood
* River Kennet
* River Lambourn
* Sandhurst to Owlsmoor Bogs and Heaths
* Seven Barrows
* Snelsmore Common
* Stanford End Mill and River Loddon
* Streatley Warren
* Sulham and Tidmarsh Woods and Meadows
* Swinley Park and Brick Pits
* Thatcham Reed Beds
* Wasing Wood Ponds
* Wellington College Bog
* West Woodhay Down
* West's Meadow, Aldermaston
* Westfield Farm Chalk Bank
* White Shute
* Windsor Forest and Great Park
* Woolhampton Reed Bed
* Wraysbury and Hythe End Gravel Pits
* Wraysbury No 1 Gravel Pit
* Wykery Copse

Geological|

* Boxford Chalk Pit
* Brimpton Pit
* Cannoncourt Farm Pit
* Cold Ash Quarry
* Fognam Chalk Quarry
* Hamstead Marshall Pit
* Pincent's Kiln
* Winterbourne Chalk Pit

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Local nature reserves in Berkshire

Bracknell Forest|

* Ambarrow Court
* Edgbarrow Woods
* Englemere Pond
* Farley Copse
* Hayley Green Wood
* Jock's Copse
* Piggy Wood
* Temple Copse
* Tinkers Copse
* Whitegrove Copse

Reading|

* Blundells Copse
* Clayfield Copse
* Lousehill Copse
* McIlroy Park
* Round Copse

Slough|

* Cocksherd Wood
* Haymill Valley
* Herschel Park

West Berkshire|

* Hosehill Lake
* Padworth Common
* Thatcham Reed Beds

Windsor and Maidenhead|

* Arthur Jacob Nature Reserve
* Bisham Woods
* Bradnam Wood
* Braywick Park
* Carpenter's Wood
* The Gullet
* Ockwells Park
* Park Wood and Goulding's Wood
* Sutherland Grange

Wokingham|

* Alder Moors
* Ali's Pond
* Heath Lake
* Highwood
* Holt Copse & Joel Park
* Lavells Lake
* Longmoor Bog
* Maiden Erlegh Lakes
* The Marshes
* Pearman's Copse
* Swallowfield Meadow

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