The path has been built for pedestrians as an alternative to walking along Coach Road which is narrow, does not have a pavement and is a steep climb up and down.
Volunteers working at the Green Wood Centre have built the path, which is about 800m long. Part of the route is on a suspended boardwalk with safety handrail, and gives a unique view of the wood it crosses, which would otherwise be difficult to access. The path has been designed for families with children and pushchairs, so has few steps.
Funding for the path has been provided by The Forestry Commission, as part of its campaign to increase the public’s access to woodland, and The Veolia Environmental Trust, who awarded a grant of £38,218 through the Landfill Communities Fund for a larger improvement project that included building the path.
“We’re very pleased the woodland path is open for people to use,” says Jude Walker, executive director at Small Woods. “We felt it was important to offer the local community and tourists an alternative and safe route through Coalbrookdale.
“Because of the ground conditions through the woodland we’ve needed to build part of the pathway on a suspended boardwalk. This means we’re opening up an area of woodland that would otherwise be inaccessible to the majority of people – and it really feels as if you’re part of the wood as you walk through it.”
The route leads out of the Green Wood Centre where Small Woods, the UK-charity which promotes sustainable woodland management, is based. The path runs through the woodland between Coach Road, which is above the pathway, and the railway line below. It re-joins Coach Road near the bottom, close to the Cinder Hill picnic area.
The Executive Director of The Veolia Environmental Trust, McNabb Laurie, adds, “It is great to hear that the new path is going to be opened and I hope it enables many more people to enjoy the woods all year round. The work was a good example of how the Trust and the Landfill Communities Fund can help improve access to our woodlands and it was an added bonus that the project gave volunteers the opportunity to learn new skills.”
The woodland which the path crosses is mainly horse chestnut trees, and is maintained by Small Woods. The hazel and willow are regularly coppiced to create a healthy sustainable habitat for local wildlife and sticks are used for making coppice-products like bean sticks and hazel hurdles. The chestnut trees will be felled in sections when they are mature and used as quality timber, with firewood offcuts. The area will be replanted to ensure continued supply and habitat.