The Woodland Walk

High Hall Nursery & Woodland Walk, High Hall Wood, Westward, Wigton, Cumbria, CA7 8NQ, United Kingdom. (GPS Lat/Lon: 54.7825/-3.1367) (map) (contact) (photos) (brochure) (e-cards)

• OPEN:    10am - 4pm    Fri, Sat, & Sun    11th April - 12th October, 2008
• Open late, till 8PM, every Friday, between 2nd May and 31st August
• High Hall Nursery & Woodland Walk 2008-2009 Calendar (1.5MB)
• High Hall Nursery & Woodland Walk - Brochure (0.3MB)
• Entrance is free

About the Woodland Walk

The woodland walk has been laid out so you can experience the beauty of private woodland - we hope you will enjoy it.

The walk is open, as per times at entrance, by kind permission of the owners and we would therefore ask that you respect the peace and quiet - it is not a public right of way.

The walk is just under ½ mile in length and takes you through woodland, which in Spring is full of bluebells, ramsons, and foxgloves, not to mention a variety of fungi. 

There are selected planting areas along the way – native, exotic and herbaceous woodland – each one of these has a layout plan for the purpose of plant, shrub and tree identification. 

There is a wide range of wildlife - red squirrels, owls, badgers, many different species of birds, including woodpeckers, thrushes, finches, tits and warblers, and if you are lucky you may see the heron coming in to land on one of the ponds or spot one of the shy roe deer.

Beck Crossing allows you to look down into the beck at plantings of candelabra primulas, ferns and other shade and moisture-loving plants – a place to stop and contemplate.

Once you reach the far side of the woodland you can either turn left for the slightly longer walk, taking in the Stumpery, and glimpsing the pretty River Townthwaite, or turn right for the shorter option – both paths merge en-route to another bridge – Little Nook.

Continue up the path, perhaps stopping at The Potting Shed* where you can take a little break, browse through old gardening books, and if interested, look at the photo board* which shows the various stages of development of this ancient woodland site, including the selective felling of all non-native trees – thus allowing our native woodland species to spread their canopy. There is a special notice board* for the children. Follow the signs back to the car park and Nursery.

High Hall Nursery & Woodland Walk - Brochure (0.3MB)

* Opening 2008

Car Parking

Parking is available, free of charge, during normal opening hours (see above). Coach parking is not available.

Legal Disclaimer: Vehicles are parked at your own risk. High Hall Nursery does not accept any liability for any loss or damage incurred whilst on the premises. Customers are encouraged to remove all valuables from their vehicle and to make sure that their vehicle is secure before leaving their vehicle unattended.

Things to Remember

We would kindly ask that you please remember a few, very simple rules whilst on the Woodland Walk:

• Sensible walking shoes are essential.
• Please take care and keep to the designated paths.
• Children should be accompanied by a responsible adult who should be aware that there is deep water in the moat surrounding the Nursery.
• Dogs are welcome but please keep them on a lead - please do not allow them to foul the path.
• Please do not drop litter.
• No picnicking allowed.
• Make sure your vehicle is secure and all valuables have been removed.

But most important of all - please enjoy yourself! 

PS: Don't forget your binoculars and bird identification books!

English Nature - free publications

If you are interested in the conservation of garden wildlife - we have some free brochures supplied by English Nature available. We particularly recommend the Minibeasts* leaflet - it is perfect to help identify the abundant invertebrate wildlife (bees, beetles, butterflies, moths, spiders, wasps, etc) that you can see along the Woodland Walk.

• Wildlife-friendly gardening
• Enjoying moths and butterflies in your garden
• Minibeasts
• Help save the bumblebee
• Give your garden a splash of colour by encouraging butterflies and dragonflies
• Reptiles in your garden
• Composting and peat-free gardening

We also have some brilliant 'Gardening with wildlife in mind' CD-ROMs, also from English Nature.

Please Note: Updates and patches for the English Nature CDs can be obtained here.

To obtain your free leaflet* or free CD* please ask at the Plant Nursery Sales Area. Many other titles from English Nature, that you can download and print yourself, are available here.

* Stocks are limited.

Keeping Fit

The Woodland Walk is the ideal setting for keeping fit and healthy whilst enjoying the beauty of nature. Why not become a regular visitor to the Woodland Walk as you improve your fitness? Entrance is free so you really have no excuse!

Take30 is a practical guide to walking to improve health and well-being, published by The Ramblers Association; their web site is well worth a visit. The guide provides a wealth of useful information including advice on walking with children, ways to walk, and how to keep up the momentum once you have started. A 10-week plan for improving your fitness through walking is also included. Please click the graphic, above, to access this useful guide. The guide is in PDF format and requires the use of Adobe Reader.

Woodland Birdsong

Please click here to listen to sounds from the woodland. Please adjust your volume control accordingly. This recording is approximately three minutes long.

For those of you with a discerning ear, you may be able to pick out such birds as the Blackbird, Blue Tit, Chaffinch, Chiff Chaff, Coal Tit, Crow, Great Tit, Greater Spotted Woodpecker, Robin, Songthrush, Warbler, Wood Pigeon, or Wren.

The Blackbird is very tuneful and loud. The Chiff Chaff repeats its name continuously. The Songthrush typically repeats its call two or three times before pausing. The Wren is very loud and shrill considering it is such a small bird.

What can you hear ?

The sound file is in Windows Media Audio (WMA) format, it is 459 KB in size. A new browser window may open during the download, please close this window once you have finished listening. The sound file should automatically play within your default media player. Alternatively, right-click on the above link and select 'Save Target As' to save the file onto your computer.

Signing the Guestbook

Thank you for visiting the Woodland Walk at High Hall Nursery, we hope you will come again. If you have enjoyed your visit, why not leave a message in our visitor's Guestbook. Thank you.