Ambrose, K, Mcgrath, A, Weightman, G, Strange, P, Lattaway, S, Lott, G, Barrett, D, Dean, S, and Liddle, P. 2012. Exploring the landscape of The National Forest. A walkers’ guide to the landscape and natural environment of The National Forest. Keyworth, Nottingham: British Geological Survey.
The Guide and map is available to purchase from the BGS shop
An ancient forest, glacial deposits and explosive gypsum works
Distance: approximately 9 km (5.5 miles) Time: about 3 hours
This walk starts in the village of Hanbury, a small and pleasant village seven miles north-west of Burton upon Trent. The village overlooks the beautiful Dove valley and also has views north to the moorlands and hills of Derbyshire. The route straddles the boundary of The National Forest and takes you through the northern extremity of the ancient Needwood Forest a chase or royal forest that today includes some of the UK’s most ancient woodland. It is a relic of the forest which was granted to the first Earl of Lancaster in the 13th century and some areas are still in the ownership of the Duchy of Lancaster today. The forest was drastically reduced in the early 19th century, with large areas of chase and deer-park cleared to make way for farmland. The walk mainly crosses over the youngest sedimentary deposits from the last glacial period. However, very little can be seen of this glacial till (a mixture of clay, sand, gravel and boulders), as the area is extensively laid to pasture.
Proceed back along Church Lane and take the second road on the left. After about 50 m, take a footpath off to your right, through a garden and over a stile. Look over to your left and you will see magnificent views across the Dove valley. Head for the right-hand corner of the field, go over another stile and on to the road. If you park in one of the other car parks [2]
There are three places to park in the village (see map), the church [1]
Start by visiting the St Werburgh’s church on Church Lane, built of nearby Bromsgrove Sandstone (p.29). You can see evidence of cross-bedding (pp.8 and 10) in many of the stones. Look inside the church and admire the magnificent stained-glass window above the altar, the fine alabaster tombs, the Anglo- Saxon cross and colourful 19th century murals. Outside in the graveyard, there are some headstones made from the local Swithland Slate quarried in Charnwood Forest. These can be easily recognised by their rough back surfaces.
Cross another stile back into woodland and after about 15 m, turn right through a gate. Follow this path, taking a left turn at the next junction, followed by a right turn that takes you along past the Fauld crater.
In places, you can see into the deep crater and note how extensively it has been colonised by woodland since it formed. The mine entrance lies just to the north of the crater and for much of this walk, you have been going over the underground caverns of the mine (p.66). Continue around the crater perimeter until you reach the memorial where you can read about the disaster [4]
Carry on along this path, through a gate and take the next footpath off to the right. Another gate takes you into a pasture field. Follow the hedge line, through a third gate and then turn to the right at the next fence line. At the end of the field turn left, then after about 20 m turn right, cross a stile and take the footpath through a small copse. Crossing another stile into a pasture field, you will see houses to your right and farm buildings straight ahead. There is no footpath marked on the ground on this section of the walk. Head for the end of the hedge running into this field, go past this, turn left and go through a gate into another field. Again there is no clear path marked here. Climb up on to the ridge ahead of you and head for the telegraph pole on your right and cross the fence; this is not an easy crossing so take care. Ahead of you, you will see a pair of telegraph poles to your right and a single pole to your left. Head for this and you will come to a waymarker by the next hedge. Here, take the path indicated off to your left — the path shown going straight on towards the farm buildings is no longer available. Go past the left hand side of the barn — this section can be very muddy in wet weather — then through two gates, on to the road and turn right [5]
After a short walk along the road, there are two paths marked off to your left, either of which can be taken. The first of these involves negotiating a difficult fence and a very muddy area when wet. The second takes you through a garden and gate. When in this next field bear to the right, head for a short length of fencing jutting out into the field and go through the gate. The path is well marked from here, taking you around the edge of some new woodland [6]
This new area of woodland has been created by the Duchy of Lancaster on a redundant gypsum mine site through the National Forest Company’s ‘Changing Landscapes Scheme’. The land here was affected by subsidence, caused by shallow gypsum mine workings, which caused a number of features known as ‘crown holes’ to form. These are roughly circular in shape with diameters of over six metres and depths of between two and seven metres. So treacherous is this ground that it could not be farmed. Instead, the 13 acre site has been designed to enhance the landscape by increasing the area of woodland that typifies this part of The National Forest, and to also attract wildlife and re-establish native species. Work started on the site in the winter of 2009/10 and planting was completed in the winter of 2010/11. A mixture of trees such as oak, ash, and silver birch are part of the woodland design that incorporates owl boxes, bat boxes, bluebell planting and the sowing of wildflowers amongst the open areas. PLEASE NOTE that the presence of the subsidence holes means that access into the wood is not allowed, but you can skirt the edge on the public bridleway. There is a convenient bench at the corner of this field to take a rest.
Walk down to the next waymarker, turn right and head across the field to the left end of the hedge ahead. Go through the next gate and note the sign warning you of gypsum subsidence ahead. In spite of this warning, there has been very little subsidence associated with the Fauld mine, apart from the redundant gypsum mine you have just visited. Continue on the well-marked path across a field, a ditch bridge, through a hedge and on to the farm buildings ahead of you. Go towards these buildings and turn right just before the house [7]
Pass through the buildings and turn to the left through the gate. Veer to the right, go through another gate and head towards the right-hand corner of this field. Cross the stile here and almost immediately turn right after the next hedge. Continue to another hedge and turn left, heading towards some houses in the distance. The path takes you through a garden and on to a road at Sycamore Farm [9]