A woodland park in an old chalk quarry at the foot of the great Humber suspension bridge, near Hessle
The Humber Bridge Country Park sits right at the north end of the bridge it is named after, on the site of an old chalk quarry and cement works. It is a green, low-key place of woodland, ponds and grassy clearings, with paths winding through the old workings, good for an easy stroll or a picnic with the bridge itself overhead the whole time.
For most first-timers the bridge is the real draw. When it opened in 1981 it was the longest single-span suspension bridge in the world, and it held that record for around 17 years. Walking or cycling across the footway and back is a proper outing in itself, with the wide brown estuary sliding along underneath, and the park gives you the best view of the towers from below.
The car park and visitor buildings are off Ferriby Road in Hessle. The Yorkshire Wolds Way begins nearby at the Humber foreshore and heads north into the hills, and the King Charles III England Coast Path passes along the shore here too. For more open water and birdlife the Humber Estuary reserve runs along the bank, and there is more walking across the bridge at Waters Edge Country Park on the Lincolnshire side.
