Uffmoor Woods, Halesowen

This is one of my favourite woods, a short drive from my home in Birmingham. I always feel refreshed when I return in all seasons.

Here are the details from The Woodland Trust. This is an 85-hectare (210-acre) wood. Uffmoor Wood is 1.6km (1 mile) south of Halesowen and around 13km (8 miles) from central Birmingham.

The wood has over 8km (5 miles) of permissive paths, including a waymarked trail and a surfaced circular route suitable for wheelchairs and buggies. Uffmoor Wood is criss-crossed by a number of streams, so some paths can be wet, especially in winter.

Uffmoor Wood has an abundance of wildlife – roe, fallow and muntjac deer roam the woods and the trees ring with birdsong. Early in the year you’ll hear the drumming of the woodpecker or catch the mewling call of a buzzard and see it twisting and spiralling in its rollercoaster display flight. The wood is also renowned for its amazing range of colourful, intricately patterned butterflies and moths. Wander through the mix of larch, pine, sycamore, ash and poplar, and you’ll come across pockets of mature oak and some trees and shrubs uncommon in the area.

History: The name of the site means 'Offa's moor'. King Offa ruled Mercia (middle England) from 757 until his death in 796.

The site had probably been wooded since the end of the last ice age, but during the 1970s most of it was felled and replanted with a conifer mix. Until 1978, it formed part of the estate of the 18th century Hagley Hall, but it was then sold to L G Harris & Co Ltd of Stoke Prior near Bromsgrove.

Since the we took over the site in 1986, the conifers have been thinned, particularly around remnants of ancient woodland, to allow the ground flora to regenerate.