About this wood
• Ancient and new woodland
• Excellent for dog walking
• Wide open spaces
Fox and Parrot Wood, named in memory of a local doctor and his beloved bird, forms part of County Durham's Great North Forest. The gently undulating grass rides make this site ideal for strolling in the fresh air and admiring the beautiful broadleaved woodland that has been taking shape here since 1998.
As well as being popular with dog walkers, this site offers a sense of boundless space where walkers can roam freely and even explore the ancient semi-natural woodland in adjoining Twizell Wood. The establishment of Fox and Parrot Wood has been important to the area's biodiversity, having been planted on improved grassland after the decline of opencast coal mining in the 1980s.
This 21-acre wood was planted in two phases in 1998 and 2004 under the Trust's Woods on Your Doorstep Project and the Forestry Commission's New Native Woodland Scheme. The site will continue to be maintained as native broadleaf high forest woodland until it begins to regenerate naturally over the next hundred years and beyond.
Five squeeze stiles at various points around the wood's boundary provide access for visitors arriving on foot. The site is generally flat and the grass rides are regularly cut to maintain easy walking conditions, although the ground can become soft and wet during the winter. A large gully crosses the western end of the wood. There are no parking facilities other than a small lay-by on Bluehouse Bank.
