Wildlife Trust Adventures: #1 Bloody Oaks Quarry

Why is there no way to get in?

Bloody Oaks Quarry is a small Wildlife Trust site on Grantham Lane, just outside the picturesque village of Empingham before you hit the A1. Going at the end of Autumn, I was treated to the last showing of the colourful leaves still hanging onto their branches, and the bright berries that looked like fireworks among the canopy.

There are signs everywhere of the site’s original use, the undulating ground littered with pieces of limestone - the presence of which allows for the growth of many species of grass, making the quarry a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).

Perhaps the strangest feature, especially on a gloomy day like when I visited, is the old concrete bunker situated among the trees about halfway into the site. Is it a war time relic, or was it used as shelter when blasting the quarry? I haven’t been able to find out, so if anyone can shed some light on its use, please do! Either way, it made for a wonderfully foreboding subject - especially considering there no longer appears to be a way to get into it.

One’s imagination can’t help but run wild.