Description

Tucked away in a corner of Cotgrave Forest, this quiet woodland is light and airy with tall, straight and substantial Corsican and Scots pine trees. These large and well-spaced conifers offer views through the wood with plenty of space for other self-seeded trees and shrubs to grow beneath.

Some oaks have seeded themselves, possibly from a few of the mature specimens growing on the hedge boundary. Jays, which can be seen and heard in the wood, play an important part in oak regeneration; burying acorns to eat later, they are often forgotten and those sown at the edge of patches of thorny scrub escape the browsing deer to get away for future generations.

Honeysuckle is also a feature of some parts of the wood, its tangled twining stems clinging on to surrounding plants and giving off a heady scent in early summer when the flowers bloom. These tangles make great nesting sites for small woodland birds such as wrens and robins.

Bracken grows in some of the clearer areas and the paths of muntjac deer and the larger roe deer can be found between the stems.

In autumn, a good selection of hedgerow fruits sustain local wildlife; blackberry, hawthorn and sloes can be found in large quantities – perhaps also affording opportunities to enhance a woods-person’s winter larder too with hedgerow wines and preserves.

The purchasers of the woodland will be asked to enter into a covenant to ensure the quiet and peaceful enjoyment of adjoining woodlands and meadows.

Trees

Corsican and Scots pine form the dominant canopy of the wood but many native broadleaved tree species are found too such as oak, alder, hawthorn, blackthorn, holly, birch and willow.

Wildlife

As the wood is part of a bigger forest, there is a great deal of wildlife resident in and passing through Hayes Wood. Birds are abundant with flocks of tits feeding in the canopy, tree-creepers and woodpeckers, seeking insect food on the tree trunks and blackbirds, robins, wrens and jays, all conspicuous, especially in the springtime.

Deer are also present with tracks and signs of muntjac and roe deer found amongst the vegetation.

The wood is also great for bats who prey on the abundant insect life. Hundreds of species of moths and butterflies are found in the forest.

Features

• Mature trees
• Grassy ride
• An old hedgerow with an autumn bounty of fruit
• A bench in a glade
• Opportunities for occasional camping

Access, tracks and footpaths

A solid stone track leads to the ride-stop entrance to the wood and from there, a path leads through to a clearing with a bench and beyond this an old grassy ride runs between the tall trees.

Rights and covenants

The sporting rights are included in the sale.

The purchasers of the woodland will be asked to enter into a covenant to ensure the quiet and peaceful enjoyment of adjoining woodlands and meadows.

Activities

Hayes Wood is a great location for a family escape and the level ground makes it well suited to setting up a tent or two or visiting with a camper van. Spend time immersed in the natural environment, listening to the breeze through the trees and the birds in the canopy.

Local area and history

The local area is rich in history. Notable characters from the local estates were involved in the agricultural revolution of the 18th Century. The Vale of Mowbray is famous for stilton cheese and pork pies.

The wood takes its name from local Ernest Hayes (1898–1938), born in Gripps Cottage, Cotgrave. Hayes joined the Kings Own Yorkshire Light Infantry in 1916 and received the Military Medal three times for bravery on the Western Front (France) in 1918.