Brayton Barff Through the Seasons.
Set in the Vale of York, South West of the market town of Selby and between the villages of Thorpe Willoughby and Brayton, lies Brayton Barff, a sandstone Hill approximately one hundred and fifty feet in height which was formed by glacial movement during the last Ice Age. It is a significant landmark in an otherwise flat landscape.
Today the site is primarily owned by Yorkshire Water with Selby District Council owning a small patch of the land adjacent to the A63 Selby bypass. A large underground reservoir occupies the centre of the site which delivers water to around 4.7 million customers throughout Yorkshire.
Within the Barff woodland over 40% of the trees are Sessile Oak which are generally found in semi natural woodlands in the north of the country. These trees are so called because its acorns are not held on stalks, like those of the English Oak (Pedunculate), but attached directly to the outer twigs. There are also several English Oak trees as well as some cross-hybrid oaks. These trees are known to support many species of flora and fauna, invertebrates, mosses, lichen and fungi.
During the Victorian times it is thought that the shipbuilders on the east coast would come over to the Barff for selected cuts of timber to build their sea going vessels.
The Barff also has a variety of other trees including Silver Birch, Beech, Sycamore, Holly, Rowan, Scots Pine, Alder, Hawthorne and European Larch. There are also several Yew, Willow, Hazel, Horse Chestnut and Wych Elm. As with similar woodlands there are a variety of bushes, including Honeysuckle, Elderberry, Gorse, Broom and Buddleia.
The history of Brayton Barff is quite vague, apparently during 1803 a beacon was lit on the Barff when the country was threatened with an invasion by Napoleon. In May 1935, to celebrate King George V's Silver Jubilee, a Bonfire was lit on the Barff as part of the celebrations.
Early issues of Ordnance Survey Maps dated 1903 clearly show a rifle range on the Barff, extending out to Mill Lane. During the 
Second World War 1939-1945 a Prisoner of War Camp was built on the site. Today, nothing is left of these buildings less some areas to the South and West of the Barff where some of the brick foundations may be seen.
Between 2001 – 2004 the A63 Selby bypass, 10km twin lane single carriageway was constructed which severed the South West corner of the Barff, adjacent to Selby Golf Course and resulted in a slight redesign of several holes on the golf course. Wooden fencing was erected as a result of this new road running alongside of the Barff and a footbridge constructed over the ‘new road’ following the line of the Bridal way which extends from Mill Lane. Around 2005/2006 a definite 2metre wide limestone aggregate footpath was laid forming a circular path around the outer edges of the woodland. This footpath is approximately 1.2 miles in length and takes about 30 minutes to circumnavigate at a leisurely pace.
In 2012 the Barff was declared an Ancient Oak Woodland and as such throughout 2012 and 2013 significant work had been carried out by the relevant agencies to cut and remove large swathes of non-native trees, creating at that time huge scars on the landscape. Some three years later the planting of the native trees have become well established and are flourishing. Ongoing maintenance work on the footpath around the bottom of the Barff was completed during the Summer of 2016.
A second phase of woodland maintenance commenced during the Autumn of 2019 with the removal of many old and diseased trees and the cutting back of the Gorse and Broom bushes, especially adjacent to the ‘bypass trail’, this work continued through till March 2020 with re planting continuing into April 2020.
Brayton Barff is a popular site for walkers and bird watchers alike and a path circling the outer perimeter of the Barff makes a pleasant thirty minute walk, giving views looking over towards Selby and the village of Brayton as well as the power stations of Drax and Eggborough..jpg)
For the early risers it is a great place to see some stunning sunrises over the villages of Brayton looking towards Drax Power Station, the same with the Sunsets looking over towards Eggborough and Monk Fryston.
The Barff changes with the Seasons and every visit can reveal something new, the woodland is a haven for wildlife. Records show that since 1982 one hundred and twelve species of bird have been seen in the woodland and at least 40 of those have bred here, including Tawny Owl, Buzzard, Green Woodpecker, Spotted Flycatcher, Goldcrest and Nuthatch to name just a few. On average over 70 species of bird are recorded each year. Further details of the bird life on the Barff can be found on the Brayton Barff Group Facebook page, especially the posts from Derek Cooper. Today ‘The Friends of Brayton Barff group’ led by Derek and a small team of volunteers help keep and maintain the cleanliness of the site as well as recording the wildlife and bird sightings.
The Barff is also home to fifteen different species of mammals, including Muntjac Deer, Pipistrelle Bat, Fox, and Field Vole.
Over eighty species of plant and wildflowers have been recorded, included Bee Orchid, Northern Marsh Orchid, Wood Anemone, Marsh Ragwort, Bluebell, White Bluebell, Bittersweet and Purple and White Foxgloves. Over twenty species of Butterfly have been recorded, including Marbled White, Brown Angus, Speckled Wood, Comma and Brimstone.
During the Autumnal months fungi thrives in this woodland environment, species including Fly Agaric, Beefsteak Tree Fungi, Chicken of the Wood, Sulphur Tufts, Stinkhorn, Ink cap, Puffballs and Hoof Bracket are just some of the many varieties that can be found here.
Click on the galleries shown below to expand the albums.
Sunday 15 July 2018
The weather of late reminds me very much of the summer of 76. It is very nearly four weeks since we returned from a ten day holiday to Southern Italy, returning home to temperatures warmer and drier than were we had been staying!
Since our holidays I have been out most mornings with Meg & Gracie at around 5.15am, we have had some wonderful morning walks on the Barff, it has been dry, other than the occasional early morning dew, pleasantly warm for that time of day ranging between 11C – 18C and very humid. I have missed the sunrises by about one hour but as the days slowly begin to shorten will catch one within the next week or so. It has been really good coming home with two dry dogs for a change, it only seems five minutes ago that I was having to wear wellies as the mud on the Barff was coming over my walking shoes and the dogs legs and under bellies were absolutely coated in mud and the washing machine was on every day washing dirty dog drying towels, happy days.
The down side to all this good weather and the summer months on the Barff in general is the Bracken, Ferns, Brambles and Grasses grow at an alarming rate. The nettles in places are standing between four and five feet tall and can leave quite a nasty impression on your legs and arms when you brush past them on some of the trails around the Barff, the only consolation I noticed this morning is that they look to be dying back. My other pet hate at the moment are the Bramble runners, some of these must grow up to six inches a day or appear too, the scratches on my arms and legs and the occasional tear on the jacket are all as a result of getting tangled up with these runners, the ones that run along the floor are the worst I think, quite often I have inadvertently placed my foot under one and walked over it with the other foot and as I make the next step it rips your sock and leaves quite a nasty scratch across your lower ankle. On a humid morning the grasses and ferns can be wet from the early morning dew and with the Rosebay Willow herb also standing some 5ft tall it is easy to finish your walk wet through from brushing past them all, especially so if and when you walk around and alongside the top perimeter fence, I have often attracted some strange looks when I return to the car park and my shorts and shirt are wringing wet through!
On a weekend I try to do a longer walk and follow the outskirts of the Barff to pick up the Bypass trail as it heads off left towards Mill Lane, it is not part of the walk I do during the week due to the volume of traffic on the Bypass but come the weekend it is much quieter especially at this time in the morning which makes it easier to cross at the Mill Lane junction. As I crossed the road to follow the path which runs behind the Hawthorn hedge and follows the Bypass trail back up to the Barff we watched a pair of Roe Deer in the field on my left adjacent to the golf course, I made eye contact with one of them as we stared at each other for a couple of moments before it turned and headed off to the reasonable safety of the centre of the field, the field has just been harvested so there wasn't many hiding places. It is quite strange as I followed the footpath back up towards the footbridge all the different shrubs and trees that have become established since the Bypass has been built, with several Buddleia bushes in full flower at the moment attracting a host of Butterflies and hoverflies, several apple trees bearing fruit, I wonder how they got there? then there are the Silver Birch trees, Hawthorn and Mountain Ash in the mix also, certainly the Apple trees and Buddleia Bushes are quite alien to the Barff and surrounding areas. After a gentle five minute stroll we are at the top of the slope and cross the footbridge over the Bypass and back onto the Barff itself, we continue our walk in a clockwise direction heading to towards the old farm shop, I could hear a flock of Swifts, they were circling overhead, swooping and chattering amongst themselves. From the tarmacked road leading to the top of the Barff we continued our walk around the bottom heading back towards the car park, I watched a young Tawny Owl for a few moments scavenging on the woodland floor about fifty yards in front of me, like the deer earlier, we both made eye contact with each other and before I had time to reach for my camera it flew up into the tree canopy and perched safely some twenty feet above my head.
I heard the Nuthatch again this morning, in fact I’ve heard it several times this past week, its distinctive call echoing amongst the dense undergrowth below. The Greater Spotted Woodpecker chicks have fledged now and can be heard calling for food from their exhausted parents, I quite frequently hear the parent bird alarm calling. I have actually seen several Tree Creepers this last week, normally I cannot see them but their distinctive white breast patches gave them away, especially when they go scuttling up the tree trunk in search of food. The Robins are as frequent as ever, they seem to accompany me everywhere I go on the Barff, although at the moment they have their youngsters to look after. Coal Tits, Chaffinch and Bullfinches are still regular visitors and it is nice to stop every now and then just to listen to their distinctive calls and songs.
By 7.00am the sun is shining and the temperature is hitting the mid-teens C, I have been out since just after 5.00am so it is time to head back for home with two exhausted and contented dogs.
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