The Trail Turns Woolly

If you go down to the woods today, you’re in for a woolly surprise.

Under the canopy of the Belper Park Woods, amidst swathes of bluebells, you may be lucky enough to stumble upon resident yarn-bomber Anne Clark’s new project.

Part of the country wide Voluntary Arts Week and the Belper Arts Festival, the ‘Woollen Woods’ in Belper have this year been themed to resemble the seaside. You can see gulls, octopi, fish and seahorses to name but a few along the Bluebell walk.

The community project, which is taking place in eleven other woods throughout the country, has seen students from the Holbrook school for Autism, the Belper Gardening Club and the Beaurepaire Photography Group working hard to contribute some of the fantastic woollen creations.

Despite being blessed with excellent weather today (May 12^th) the rain has made the route a little muddy in places so I would recommend putting on your boots before you go out walking as some areas were slippery.

The Route

From the Coppice car park walk down to the bridge. Turn left up the stepped path through the wood. Cross the path from Mill Lane and enter the woodland opposite.

Follow the track up to where it meets another sunken path by an old beech tree. Drop back down to and cross the main path to the bench at the top of the ski slope. Take the path into the wood by the “standing stone” and then drop down the terraced track through the wood across the old wall to the Heritage Way. Make your way from there back to the bridge.

The route is marked by means of blue ribbons tied around trees above head height.

Running from the 6th – 15th of May ‘The Woollen Woods’ takes place in Belper Park Woods.

Maps are available from Belper Homecrafts. For more of Anne Clark’s work visit her site at http://www.anneclarkhandmade.co.uk/

The Belper Arts Festival continues until the end of May.