Annalong wood info

[spartan00117]

I was just wondering if anyone has any pics yet of the devastation the fires created at Annalong wood.  I havent had time to get up myself yet but hopefuly in the next few weeks.

[LennyJ1]

Here is about 2 weeks ago

[spartan00117]

Holy Feck!!!!!

[LennyJ1]

I thought it looked like a scene from a viatnam film. 

[spartan00117]

Is that Hamburger Hill in the back ground

[ChuckMcB]

As LennyJ1's photo shows the section of wood along the path to the Blue Lough From Carrick Little is in bad shape (but the fire stopped _just_ short of the wild camp sites so they are still usable):

Pic from Start of April this year (just shows you how much of a beating that wee bit of wood's taken over the years)


Pic from last Saturday (28th May) - the brown tree are the burnt ones


It's a shame the Annalong Wood is owned by NI Water, they probably have no interest in replanting.

The rest of the wood is totally untouched, _loads_ of forest out there.






I went for a wee explore and found five or six camping spots (including ones with sandbag shelters, big thick tarp supports hammered into the ground) right along the river, deepish in the forest..


The fire was moving soo fast it just burnt the surface, so the grass is growing back fast but it will be a couple of years (if ever) until we see heather in the valley:

Two days after the fire:


Saturday:


The fire burnt up the valley on the far side of the river...it never jump the river


(More pics here, here and here)

ps. anyone seen this 'mini Binnian tunnel'? It's maybe 100m long and a dead end...god knows what's crawled up and died in there, but could be a good explore for braver folks than me

[LandyLiam]

I think thats one for drongo to explore 

[sjh1]

"It's a shame the Annalong Wood is owned by NI Water, they probably have no interest in replanting."

My hope is that it regenerates naturally with native, deciduous species. Not sure how realistic this is, but if the sheep are kept out who knows? There are some wee patches of natural scrub around the wood.

[LandyLiam]

My hope is that it regenerates naturally with native, deciduous species.

could we possibly help the "natural" process a little by planting some ourselves?

[Kayakgirl]

My hope is that it regenerates naturally with native, deciduous species.

could we possibly help the "natural" process a little by planting some ourselves?

Sounds like a plan..

[sjh1]

My hope is that it regenerates naturally with native, deciduous species.

could we possibly help the "natural" process a little by planting some ourselves?

Possibly. What are you thinking? For anything large scale permission would no doubt be needed from NI water?

A few ash trees planted here and there would be good, they self-seed really well once there's a few about. Edit: Mountain ash might suit the terrain better but don't know how well they self-seed.

[Samm]

While I agree with the general feeling of tree planting in the Mournes, seeing as for this latitude most of the Mournes is below the tree line and had man not mucked about in the first place the mountains would look very different to what we see today, legally its a different matter. Forgetting for one second about it being private land. Most of the Mournes is internationally protected for its importance for nature conservation. While I'm unsure if the boundary includes the woods or not, if it does, even with the landowners permission you would still have massive hoops to jump through to be allowed plant anything here. I know how insane this sounds, I'm just the messenger, I don't make the rules! A good first contact would be to go and have a natter with Mournes Heritage Trust.
Personally it would be nice to see the area allowed to regenerate naturally, although I imagine that stock numbers will ensure that trees, in any significant number, won't be able to regenerate naturally.

[LandyLiam]

i wasn't thinking of spending each weekend tree planting   , more along the lines of would it worth worth dropping a few seeds about here and there while walking past the area now i know next to nothing about trees, would throwing a few seeds around have any effect or do they need planted properly? i like the idea of planting the odd tree in strange places in the mournes, like that one near the percy bysshe, anyone know if it survived?

[whoRya]

I'm sure if it was only matter of throwing a few seeds down we'd be getting overtaken by apple trees around know.  Granted I haven't a clue what I am talking about.

[sjh1]

i wasn't thinking of spending each weekend tree planting   , more along the lines of would it worth worth dropping a few seeds about here and there while walking past the area now i know next to nothing about trees, would throwing a few seeds around have any effect or do they need planted properly? i like the idea of planting the odd tree in strange places in the mournes, like that one near the percy bysshe, anyone know if it survived?

In places like Annalong Forest it can't do any harm (as long as they're not invasive species you're planting). On the open bogland/mountain it's probably not to be encouraged but they're unlikely to survive the sheep anyway.

Re. the sheep, are they not fenced out of the Annalong Forest area? That's why I think natural regeneration might be possible there.