Roughtalley’s Wood Local Nature Reserve

Size: 3.4 Hectares

Grid Reference: TL 489 036

Owners: Epping Forest District Council

LNR Declaration: 17 August 2000

Access: There is open public access on the reserve. pedestrian access is via entrances from Pike Way, North Weald. There is no designated car park for the reserve,so please park considerably on Pike Way. 

Site description: Roughtalley's Wood in its entirety is a large ancient woodland covering 25 hectares. However, in 1860’s it was divided unequally in two by the creation of the Eastern Counties Railway Epping to Ongar line extension. The largest section of the wood lies to the south of the railway is privately owned by the Gaynes Park Estate and was until the early 1990’s managed for commercial timber. Much of the original wood was removed and replanted with conifer and sweet chestnut. Today, the wood has become the district's first green burial site - The Epping Forest Burial Park. This has created public access and management of the wood once more. A programme of management will slowly see the reversible of conifer trees in preference to native hardwoods. Countrycare will be working in partnership with the burial park to improve the biodiversity of the area. 

The smaller section of Roughtalley's Wood to the north of the railway is owned by Epping Forest District Council and is the small woodland (just 3.4 hectares) which in 2000 was declared a Local Nature Reserve (LNR) by Epping Forest Council.

The LNR can be neatly divided into two distinct areas. The first is an area of ancient woodland, totalling 1.1 hectares and is clearly a remnant of the large semi natural ancient woodland which stills exists south of the railway line. The trees within this area of the wood are varied and consist of hornbeam, oak and silver birch with an under storey of primarily hazel and hawthorn.

The ground flora within the wood is generally poor due to lack of recent management and bramble tends to dominate. However, in the more open glades you may be lucky enough to spot orchids such as the broad-leaved helleborine, bee orchid and common spotted orchid.

The second part of the LNR lies to the north of Pike Way and the large ditch which runs through nature reserve. This area was once dominated by exotic Italian black poplar, lime and whitebeam that was planted by the Ministry of Defence as cover for RAF North Weald during the Second World War. However, in the storms of 1987 and 1990 this area was extensively damaged and in most cases the large trees destroyed.

Today, this area of the reserve consists of a mixture of open grassy areas, some quite wet, dense areas of bramble and developing mixed broad-leaved trees, which have been planted since 1991.

Countrycare have been involved with the reserve since 1990 and undertaken many volunteer projects to improve the site. Recent works in 2000, involved the creation of a 650 metre pathway around the site to improve public access over the entire site for all visitors. In addition new bridges and a 50-metre section of boardwalk was installed.

Over the years Countrycare has organised a number of events and projects centred on the nature reserve one such project was the “The Roughtalley’s Wood Sculpture Project” which has left a lasting legacy on the reserve. See bench shown in pictures above.

So like many of our other nature reserves Roughtalley’s Wood is not very big, it’s easy to stroll around in half an hour, but it still offers the chance of a pleasant woodland experience. There are always many birds at the site and if you are very lucky you may get the glimpse of a slow worm, grass snake or an orchid is the sunnier spots.

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