King's Castle Wood

King's Castle Wood footpath through wood Neil Watson

King'a Castle Wood - Neil Watson

Just a mile south-east of the centre of Wells, this is an ancient semi-natural woodland, made up primarily of ash, hazel and field maple, with planted oak and a fine stand of small-leaved lime. The main woodland is on a flat-topped promontory of the outlying Mendip Hills where an Iron Age fort once stood.

Location

King's Castle Wood,
Woodbury
Wells
Somerset

OS Map Reference

ST 568 456
A static map of King's Castle Wood

Know before you go

Size
12 hectares
P

Parking information

No car park. Footpaths from Wells join a right of way off the B3139. There is open access at ST 565 456. Walk along the track to the east.

Grazing animals

No

Access

King's Castle Wood is not easily accessible by car. On foot the main route to the woodland is south from the centre of Wells on the B3139; turn right after half a mile.

Dogs

On a lead

Visit the 'Dog walking on reserves' page in the Contact section for more information.

When to visit

Opening times

Open at all times

Best time to visit

April to July

About the reserve

Below the trees the ground is rich in wild flowers and dominated in patches by Bluebell and Dog's Mercury. Uncommon species include Solomons Seal, Spurge Laurel, Wood Goldilocks, Herb Paris, Meadow Saffron, Toothwort and Common Gromwell.

The margins of the wood have many plants characteristic of unimproved calcareous grassland including Wild Thyme, Salad Burnet, Common Rockrose and Vervain.

Important nesting birds include Marsh Tit while Wood warbler has also been recorded.

Notable invertebrates include Silver-Washed fritillary and Oil Beetle.

The woodland fauna is diverse. Roe Deer and Grey Squirrel are common, there are badger setts in the wood and there have been occasional records of a number of bat species including Serotine and Noctule.

Contact us

Somerset Wildlife Trust
Contact number: 01823 652400

Environmental designation

Scheduled Ancient Monument

King's Castle Wood documents