Thetford Forest is the largest lowland pine forest in Britain, located in a region straddling the north of Suffolk and the south of Norfolk in England. See also Kingdom of Great Britain Great Britain (Breatainn Mhòr Prydain Fawr Breten Veur Graet Breetain is the larger of the two main islands Suffolk (ˈsʌfək is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. Norfolk (ˈnɔrfək is a low-lying county in East Anglia, England, United Kingdom. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland
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History
It was created after the First World War to provide a strategic reserve of timber, since the country had lost so many oaks and other slow-growing trees as a consequence of the war's demands. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All The term oak can be used as part of the common name of any of about 400 species of Trees and Shrubs in the Genus Quercus (from Latin It is managed by the Forestry Commission. The Forestry Commission (established in 1919 is a Non-ministerial government department responsible for Forestry in Great Britain. The creation of the forest destroyed much of the typical Breckland environment of gorse and sandy ridges, ending the frequent sand blows (where the wind picked up sand and blew it across the road reducing visibility). The Breckland as a landscape region is an unusual natural habitat of England. However, this environment was itself man-made, since the area had been denuded by flint-mining, the construction of rabbit warrens and other activities. Grimes Graves is located within the forest. Grimes Graves is a large Neolithic Flint mining complex near Brandon in England close to the border between Norfolk and
Biodiversity
The forest has a high level of biodiversity. It is home to a large population of hares, rabbits and gamebirds. Several species of deer also reside there, Muntjac, Roe Deer and a small population of Red Deer, the last hunted by the Thetford Forest Staghounds. The European Roe Deer ( Capreolus capreolus) is a Deer species of Europe, Asia Minor, and Caspian coastal regions The Red Deer ( Cervus elaphus) is one of the largest Deer species It is largely surrounded by farmland, as well as the villages of West Stow, Ingham, Elveden, and the towns of Thetford in Norfolk, and Brandon in Suffolk. West Stow is a small parish in West Suffolk, England The village lies north of Bury St Thetford is a Market town and Civil parish in the Breckland area of Norfolk, England. Brandon is a small Town and Civil parish in the English county of Suffolk. The forest is home to a good number of birds, such as Woodlark, Nightjar, Goshawk, Crossbill, Siskin and an introduced population of Golden Pheasant. The Woodlark ( Lullula arborea) is the only Lark in the genus Lullula. This article is about the bird For the aircraft see Gloster Nightjar. The Goshawk ('ɡɔːshɔːk Accipiter gentilis; from OE góshafoc 'goose-hawk' is a medium-large Bird of prey in the family Accipitridae The crossbills are birds in the Finch family Fringillidae. The three to five (or possibly many more species are all classified in the genus Loxia For the aeroplane see Armstrong Whitworth Siskin A number of small Birds in the Finch family Fringillidae are named as siskins The Golden Pheasant or " Chinese Pheasant ", ( Chrysolophus pictus) is a Gamebird of the order Galliformes (gallinaceous All of these can be found at Mayday[1]
High Lodge Visitors Centre
Deep in the heart of the forest lies High Lodge Visitors Centre. High Lodge has a 100 seater restaurant, gift shop, cycle hire, adventure play area, walking trails and cycling trails. It is also the home to the Go Ape high wire adventure course.
There is a toll charge of £6 to enter High Lodge. The money raised is injected back into the forest and is much needed for the survival of such facilities.
The centre is open all year round, except Christmas Day.
Mountain Biking
The forest is a popular destination for mountain biking, and has several marked trails ranging from those suitable for families, to the Black Trail for experienced riders. Mountain biking entails the Sport of riding Bicycles off-road often over rough terrain whether riding specially equipped Mountain bikes or hybrid road bikes A grading system for way-marked off-road cycling Trails has been adopted in the UK and is used by official bodies such as the Forestry Commission and IMBA A grading system for way-marked off-road cycling Trails has been adopted in the UK and is used by official bodies such as the Forestry Commission and IMBA The forest also has hundreds of miles of singletrack, several bomb holes and a steeply undulating section called The Beast. XCRacerjpg|thumb|A cross-country rider on singletrack during a race]] Single track or singletrack is narrow Mountain biking trail that is approximately
National cross-country cycling races are held in the forest. Cross-country ( XC) cycling is the most common discipline of Mountain biking. There is also a recently formed organisation called TIMBER (Thetford Improved Mountain Biking EnviRonment) which aims to work with the Forestry Commission to improve the mountain bike trails in the forest.
Bikes can be hired from the High Lodge Forest Centre.
Music in the Forest
It also hosts annual concerts from such luminaries as Pulp and Jools Holland. Pulp were an English Alternative rock band formed in Sheffield in 1978 by Jarvis Cocker ( vocals Guitar) Julian Miles "Jools" Holland OBE, DL (born 24 January 1958) is an English Pianist, Bandleader
2007 saw The Feeling, Blondie, M People, Travis, James Morrison and Van Morrison take to the stage at High Lodge. The Feeling is a five-piece BRIT award -nominated British band from Sussex and London. Blondie is an American rock band that first gained fame in the late 1970s and has so far sold over 60 million records M People are a British House music act from Manchester formed in 1990 which achieved success throughout most of the 1990s Travis are a Scottish Alternative rock band from Glasgow, comprising Fran Healy ( lead vocals, Guitar, Piano, James or Jim Morrison (or Morison) is the name of several persons In music: James Morrison (fiddler (1893-1947 Irish George Ivan Morrison OBE (generally known as Van Morrison) (born 31 August 1945 is a Grammy Award -winning Northern Irish Singer,
Other Activities
There is also a walk way through the trees called 'Go Ape'. There is a Center Parcs holiday resort at Elveden which also brings many visitors. Center Parcs is a European network of Holiday villages incorporating a UK based company which runs holiday villages in Britain and a sister enterprise that operates in numerous
A sizeable proportion of Thetford Forest and the surrounding woodlands is reserved for military activities, with public access forbidden; this land is used for farming, so one can often hear small-arms fire from the far side of an idyllic meadow covered in grazing sheep.
References
External links
- Map sources for Thetford Forest
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