Chance Wood
Chance Wood is located between Kinver and Stourton, overlooking the River Stour and the Staffordshire & Worcestershire canal. It was planted as an ornamental wood in the 19th century, and is dominated by large oaks and beech with big specimens of hornbeam, ash, sycamore, horse chestnut, sweet chestnut and a few conifers.
This article is extracted from KinverOnline Forum posts from the Warden and from Henry Chance, grandson of Mr Holmes. Further content from The Worcestshire Wildlife Trust, and pictures from The Worcestshire Wildlife Trust Flikr album.
“The wood was donated to the Worcestershire Wildlife Trust in 1977 by Mr P. E. M. Holmes of Stourton House , when he sold the property and moved to Herefordshire. His wife’s maiden name was Chance and her parents lived at Stourton Court, having moved there in 1939.
Mr and Mrs Holmes had bought the Stourton House and six acres from their relation Owen Grazebrook of Stourton Castle in 1950 for £4750, though it was a year before they could move in as it was such a wreck and they had trouble getting a repair licence, materials and a builder.
Geoffrey Chance of Stourton Court ran Himley Brick Ltd. which was started as an off-shoot of Chance Brothers (glass makers) to make fire bricks for the glass kilns. The two companies were run quite separately by different branches of the family, although during the War Geoffrey Chance was invited onto the board of Chance Brothers. Himley Brick was eventually bought by Ibstock.
The Warden, alias ”Conker”, has taken some fantasic pictures of Chance Wood, made available at the Worcestshire Wildlife Trust Flikr album
A romantic feature of Chance Wood is a small cemetery for dogs on the hill-top with headstones dating back to 1858. The stories on some of the the stones are quite sad, one dog having been run over by a train, another shot. Queen Victoria started the ‘trend’ for dog cemeteries in stately homes by having one at Osborne House and the owners must have followed the fashion.
It is believed that the woodland was managed as a wild garden, and must have been an early example of Wildlife Gardening‘and one of the early Trust volunteers was appropriately Chris Baines who re-kindled interest in wildlife gardening and urban nature conservation on TV in the early ’80s.
Plants such as wood sage, foxgloves, snowdrops and bluebells abound. Other interesting plants are dame’s violet and Italian lords-and-ladies, a relative of wild arum with dark green leaves and palely marked veins. Both are garden escapes which have become naturalised.
The reserve was landscaped with sandstone block terraces and planted with spring bulbs and rhododendron in Victorian times. In the 1980′s it was largely impenetrable with huge bushes of rhododendron and sycamore saplings which acted as a palisade against all exploration and had virtually eliminated all other ground flora. Tracks were cut and a small observation hide erected. Management plans since then have focused on yhe removal of sycamores as completely as possible and vigorous control of rhododendron. The soil is poor and having been ‘poisoned’ by rhododendron it has taken many years for a ground flora to re-establish but things are moving now.
The big trees and old timber are good for many woodland birds. Tits, woodpeckers, nuthatches and tree creepers are frequent. The old trees provide a good supply of invertebrate food and contain many suitable nesting holes which have been supplemented with nest boxes and bat boxes. In winter many birds are attracted to a feeding station.
The Trust welcomes careful visitors at any time, but please treat the reserve with respect; recent research shows that dogs even when on leads disturb 40% more wildlife than a solitary walker and that the bulbs can be killed by a single footstep. Please keep dogs on leads and remain on the paths particularly during spring flower times and early summer nesting periods.
The Trust runs three or four work parties each year, removing sycamore, controlling rhododendron and opening paths, and anybody who would like to work off a bit of energy in a constructive, healthy manner could contact the Warden for dates and times.”
Location and access: The reserve may be visited at any time. Access is via a bridle-way running south from the main Stourbridge to Bridgnorth road (A 458), about 800m west of its junction with the A 449. Parking is very restricted, with a little space on nearby road verges. The bridle-way starts immediately opposite Greensforge Lane. After about 200m enter the reserve on the right. The bridle way continues round the reserve and footpaths may be followed to Kinver. There is a map showing the paths
Alternatively the reserve can be accessed from the footpath running from The Hyde to Stourton Castle. From Hyde Lock, head towards the Hyde, cross the River Stour and turn right through the turnstile at the “Hyde Spade Mill” noticeboard and follow the footpath leading to Stourton Castle. Bear left through a small gate and up the hill into the reserve.
This article is extracted from KinverOnline Forum posts from the Warden and from Henry Chance, grandson of Mr Holmes. Further content from The Worcestshire Wildlife Trust
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