Forest Way

Forest Way

Infobox Hiking trail
Name=Forest Way
Photo=Forest Way Footpath.jpg|200px
Caption=
Location=West Sussex, England
Designation=
Length=convert|10|mi|abbr=on
Start/End Points=East Grinstead - Groombridge
Use=Hiking, Cycling, Horseriding
ElevChange=
HighPoint=
LowPoint=
Difficulty=
Season=
Months=
Sights=
Hazards=

The Forest Way is a linear Country park providing walking, cycling, horse riding and the quiet enjoyment of the countryside. It runs for around 16 km from East Grinstead to Groombridge.

The Forest Way lies within the High Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in the heart of the picturesque East Sussex countryside with the Ashdown Forest lying to the south. It takes the route of a disused railway line and now provides an important habitat for wildlife forming a ‘green corridor’ through the upper valley of the River Medway. The route runs from East Grinstead, via Forest Row, Hartfield, and Withyham to Groombridge.

Walking, cycling and accessibility

A flat, surfaced track runs along the entire length of the Forest Way providing easy access for disabled users and an ideal place for children to learn to cycle away from traffic. There are toilet facilities at Forest Row. The western end of the Forest Way links up, at East Grinstead, with the Worth Way which extends as far as Three Bridges.

There are a number of circular trails leading from the Forest Way. These vary in length and difficulty. East Sussex County Council provides leaflets giving information on "Forest Way Country Park and circular walks" and "Forest Row walk". [http://www.eastsussex.gov.uk/leisureandtourism/countryside/walks/forestway/ East Sussex CC ] , Forest Way information]

Along the route trees have regenerated naturally on the embankments and cuttings providing an excellent habitat for swallows, badgers, deer and foxes, in the fields and woodlands.

Forest Way provides access to Weir Wood Reservoir with its plentiful bird life and sailing and to Standen country house designed by Philip Webb which contains fine examples of William Morris designs. [http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-vh/w-visits/w-findaplace/w-standen/ National Trust] , National Trust information on Standen]

History

In 1866, a railway line, the Three Bridges to Tunbridge Wells Central Line, opened from East Grinstead through to Tunbridge Wells - an extension of the line from Three Bridges. In 1966 it was closed under the Beeching axe despite being a busy commuter line. Ironically, Dr Richard Beeching lived at East Grinstead and regularly travelled up to London on the line when he was Chairman of British Rail. The disused railway line was bought by East Sussex County Council in 1971 and designated as a Country Park in 1974.

Major improvements to the track surface in 2002 led to its inclusion in the Sustrans National Cycle Network. To the west of East Grinstead, the cycle route continues as the Worth Way along the disused section of line to Three Bridges. In addition, there are as yet unrealised plans to link the Forest Way from Groombridge with the Cuckoo Trail, another trail following the route of a disused railway line, which runs from Heathfield to Hampden Park near Eastbourne.

References

External links

* [http://www.eastsussex.gov.uk/leisureandtourism/countryside/walks/forestway/ East Sussex County Council on the Forest Way]
* [http://www.ashdownfoe.co.uk/ Ashdown Friends of the Earth]


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Forest Way Guest House — (Pirdop,Болгария) Категория отеля: 2 звездочный отель Адрес: 21 Slavtsi str …   Каталог отелей

  • Forest Row — Infobox UK place official name=Forest Row country=England region=South East England static static image caption=The centre of Forest Row area footnotes=cite web |url=http://www.eastsussexinfigures.org.uk/webview/ |title=East Sussex in Figures… …   Wikipedia

  • Forest Brothers — Participant in Guerilla war in the Baltic states Active 1940 41, 1944 1956 Ideology National liberation Leaders Area of operations …   Wikipedia

  • Forest Evashevski — (born February 19, 1918) was a college football player at the University of Michigan and a college football coach and athletic director at the University of Iowa. He was born in Detroit, Michigan.BackgroundForest Evashevski, nicknamed Evy , was… …   Wikipedia

  • Forest Guardians — is a non profit environmental organization that is based out of Santa Fe, New Mexico. One of their fundamental beliefs is that the diversity of wildlife, plants and ecosystems, and wild spaces untrammeled by human beings hold the key to the… …   Wikipedia

  • Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale — Forest Lawn Memorial Park is a privately owned cemetery in Glendale, Los Angeles, in the United States. It is the original location of Forest Lawn, a chain of cemeteries in Southern California (termed memorial parks by the company).Forest Lawn… …   Wikipedia

  • Forest Park (Queens) — Forest Park is an urban forest, one of the natural treasures of the New York City borough of Queens. It has an area of 538 acres (2.15 km²). The park is operated and maintained by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation.City of New… …   Wikipedia

  • Forest Hills Cemetery — in the Forest Hills area of Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts (a primarily residential section of Boston) is a historic convert|275|acre|km2|1|sing=on cemetery, greenspace, arboretum and sculpture garden. Designed in 1848, it is one of the finest… …   Wikipedia

  • Forest protection — is a general term describing methods purported to preserve or improve a forest threatened or affected by abuse. There is considerable debate over the effectiveness of forest protection methods.One simple type of forest protection is the… …   Wikipedia

  • Forest City, Utah — Forest City is a ghost town in Utah County, Utah, United States. It is located in the valley of Dutchman Flat in the upper part of American Fork Canyon, in the Uinta National Forest. A silver mining town just over the mountain from Alta, Forest… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”