Bin Wood and Christmaspie

A male nuthatch

A walk on wide paths and lanes in a mixture of countryside and woodland, ideal for winter but enjoyable in all seasons

  1. Go to the car park at the end of South Lane, Ash. At the left-hand end of the car park pass the sign about Ash Green Meadows SANG, turn right and immediately left up onto the well-surfaced old railway track. Turn left. This old track has rich hedgerows on both sides. These will attract birdlife throughout the year and butterflies and dragonflies in the summer. Pass an old railway bridge, the site of Ash Green station, closed well over 60 years ago, now a private house and continue until just before the next old bridge. Turn left up the bank onto the lane.
  2. Turn right and continue straight onto the rough-surfaced lane. Don’t cross the railway bridge. More rich hedgerows and horse paddocks through the trees on your right. Continue to the end where it meets a road.
  3. Turn right and cross over another railway bridge. At the T junction turn right along the lane. Nuthatches were in the hedgerow when I passed. After a while the road bends left, ignore Pound Farm Lane on your right. Pass East Wyke Farm and East Wyke Barns and immediately turn right following a track to a T-junction.
  4. Turn right. Continue on this solid track for over 1 kilometre (3/4 mile) along a long straight stretch, then occasional bends, until you eventually reach a road.
  5. Turn right, walk under the railway bridge into Christmaspie and turn immediately right into Beech Lane with a trackside full of wild birds. Follow this road now as it bends left and reach Beech Tree Farm where the track enters woodland. Continue on this track. At the top of the incline, follow the track to the left. This is definitely Jackdaw country. Reach a T junction and Patch Farm opposite.
  6. Turn right. This track soon turns into another quiet country lane and the lane soon bends right and after the first property, Pound Farm, look for the Byway on the left, just before the barn. Continue on this Byway enjoying all the large trees providing shelter along the track. You will see a lovely wild area to the right-hand side under overhead electricity cables. This is worth a visit if you have time to look for birds, butterflies, flowers and fungi. Otherwise, continue on the track until it becomes a lane and a crossroads with Ash Green Lane West sign.
  7. Continue straight over. This lane now leads onto another Byway, which will eventually reach Bin Wood. You will pass footpath signs telling you that Ash Green Meadows SANG is both sides of the track. Here you will find footpaths and alternative routes away from the track that can be explored if you have the energy or time. Your path bends to the right and you meet the old railway track path close to where you first joined it. Cross the railway path, turn to the right and your car and South Lane will be on the left.