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THE WYCHWOOD FOREST
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In 1086, the Domesday book designated swathes of modern West Oxfordshire the 'Royal Hunting Forest of Wychwood'. The historical term 'Forest' didn't describe a particular type of habitat but was instead a legal designation, denoting areas in which hunting rights were reserved for the sovereign.
A dappled landscape of ancient forest, meadows, cultivated open fields, heaths and downs, the historic Wychwood Forest provided a variety of wild spaces for flora and fauna. Communities within the historic Wychwood Forest were united by shared traditions and customs, shared laws and a shared way of life.
Covering 120 square miles from the rolling hills of the Cotswolds to the floodplains of the Thames, the historic Wychwood area remains the least developed region in Oxfordshire. Traces of ancient habitats survive in the area, including limestone grasslands hosting nationally rare flowers and fragments of ancient woodland.
"The Wychwood was far from entirely wooded, and yet it was one of the most wooded Forests in England. As well as woodland, the medieval Forest included a rich patchwork of meadows, cultivated open fields, heaths and downs - a wide range of wildlife habitats, and important aspects of the Forest’s landscape."
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Charles Keighley - Discovering Wychwood
EXPLORE THE WYCHWOOD
If you'd like to get out and explore the Wychwood on foot or by bike, there are plenty of routes to choose from. We've developed short guides to ten circular routes that connect with the 37–mile Wychwood Way circuit, and a longer guide to the full 37–mile route.
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WYCHWOOD WAY
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If you're keen to explore West Oxfordshire's countryside, the 37–mile circular Wychwood Way may be for you. The route takes you around the heart of the ancient Royal Forest of Wychwood, passing through gorgeous villages, river valleys, nature reserves and SSIs, and historic Bronze Age settlements.
We publish a very popular guide to the Wychwood Way written by Mary Webb and Alan Spicer, which also includes the circular walks mentioned below. To purchase a copy, visit our online shop.
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CIRCULAR WALKS
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Circular walks around the former Wychwood Forest range from three to seven miles in length, and pass through rolling farmland, ancient woodland and trackways, Roman villas and rural villages. To improve their accessibility, we've installed kissing and pedestrian gates along the routes. To find out more about the routes, please visit the Oxfordshire County Council's website or purchase our guide to the Wychwood Way.
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Thanks to The Cotswolds National Landscape Volunteer Wardens and Oxfordshire County Council's Countryside Service for their help in installing the gates, and to the Trust for Oxfordshire's Environment, the Waste Recycling Group, and the Oxford Fieldpath Society for supporting the project financially.
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WALKS ON PUBLIC RIGHTS OF WAY
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Many walks in the Wychwood area are on Public Rights of Way, and you can download some beautiful walks and cycle rides for free from the Oxfordshire Cotswolds website.
If you'd like to walk through ancient forest, one public right of access runs through the middle of the forest on the private property of the Cornbury Estate. Unfortunately, there is no other public right of access to the original forest - 90% of the surviving forest in the Wychwood area is in private land ownership. You can find out more about the circular walk through Charlbury's ancient forest here.
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CYCLING
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Why not try out the 'Wychwood Loop', a circular cycling day ride between Charlbury and Kingham railway stations? Find out more on the Cotswold Cycling website.
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FURTHER TOURIST INFORMATION
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If you'd like to find out more about tourist activities in the Wychwood area, visit West Oxfordshire District Council's website. One useful resource is the Oxfordshire Countryside Access Map, provided by Oxfordshire County Council's Countryside Service, which shows Public Rights of Way, access land, walks, and rides in Oxfordshire.
