Coill an Fhaltaigh – “Wall’s Woods” – is one of the sixteen People’s Millennium Forests planted across Ireland to mark the year 2000. It lies about 6 km southwest of Kilkenny and is managed by Coillte.
The ground has a longer story than the millennium planting suggests. It was old broadleaf woodland once, part of the Brittas Estate held by the O’Rourke family, whose Brittas Castle stands in ruins nearby. In the late 1940s and 1950s it was cleared and put down to conifers. When those reached size they were felled, and the site was replanted with a native mix of sessile oak, ash, birch, alder, cherry and spindle. Threaded through the young growth is a stand of oak more than a century old, the piece of the wood that was never cleared.
The walks
This is a place for an easy outing, not a hike. Two marked loops leave the entrance area.
- Green Walk (2.2 km): the shorter marked loop, through the replanted native woodland.
- Red Walk (3.3 km): the longer circuit, which passes through the millennium planting area.
If you have limited time, the Green Walk does the job; the Red Walk takes you further into the planting. Use the forest’s trail map and check gate and forestry notices before setting out. Surfaces and gradients vary, so look at the map and the ground before you take a buggy or wheelchair.
Wildlife
The wood sits somewhere between plantation and mature forest. Under the old oaks bluebells are a feature of spring, with wood sorrel, primrose, herb robert, violet and lords-and-ladies among the woodland flowers. Woods like this commonly hold squirrels, fox, stoat, hare, rabbit and hedgehog, and birds such as treecreeper and goldcrest. Bats are active over woodland rides at dusk. The site has been part of a long-term ecological monitoring programme since 2003, tracking how these restored woods mature.
Through the year
- Spring: fresh leaf on the young canopy and, under the older oaks, the bluebells.
- Summer: long evenings are pleasant for a walk, with insects along the sunnier rides.
- Autumn: leaf colour, and fungi in the damp leaf litter.
- Winter: the quietest season, when bare branches make the birds easier to see.
Practical information
Entry is free. Check the Coillte page and any notices at the gate for current access arrangements, parking and facilities before you travel, and bring water and a rain jacket in case there is nothing on site. Kilkenny is the nearest place for food and toilets.
Public transport is thin on the ground, so this is really a place to drive to. Keep to the paths, give other visitors room and keep dogs under control to protect the young trees and the understorey.
Nearby
The wood pairs well with the rest of the county. North lies the Castlecomer plateau, with heathland walks, waterfalls and the Discovery Park. Back in the city the 13th-century Black Abbey has a quiet cloister garden, and Jerpoint Abbey on the Nore is worth the trip for its carved cloister figures alone.
For the wood at its best, come in spring, when the bluebells are out under the older oaks.