Hirst Wood

Hirst Wood has always been a popular local beauty spot, where in the past local children learnt to swim in the canal.

The ancient wood of birch and oak grew up on the bank of boulders and gravel known as moraine, left behind by the retreating glacier 10,000 years ago.

Within the woods you may come across the fragile remains of a 2000 year old circular stone hut found in 1950. 

There are also the remains of buildings associated with an old fulling mill, New Hirst Mill, which cleaned and processed wool using water from the River Aire.

You can also see a quarry beside the canal for stone which may have been used to build the walls, locks and bridges of the canal.

Hear about the wildlife.

Hirst Wood is an ancient wood of birch, beech and oak growing on a bank of glacial moraine.

Small flocks of Long Tailed Tits are often seen feeding in the woods. They are noisy and gregarious with a tail far longer than their body.

The woods are covered in a blanket of bluebells in May.

The remains of buildings associated with an old fulling mill on the River Aire.

Bingley Heritage Awareness Project: