Chapel Wood

Crowned by an Iron Age hill fort, Chapel Wood isn’t just a wonderful place for a woodland walk, it’s a truly historic and atmospheric site. The Devon nature reserve was one of the RSPB’s very first in the southwest.

Though it’s small, an impressive array of birds hide out in these woods. Tawny Owls and Nuthatches raise their chicks here, as do Great Spotted and Green Woodpeckers. Red Deer, Brown Hares and badgers can often be spotted amongst the Bluebells, Primroses and Foxgloves in summer.

We’re located on a steep hill, but the view from the top across part of the north Devon AONB (Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty) is well worth the walk. Soak up the stillness and silence of the woods as you go, broken only by the sound of the streams rushing by.

We manage Chapel Wood to create the ideal conditions for wildlife. Most of our work involves gradually removing non-native trees and replacing them with species that better support our native flora and fauna. This includes a large patch of oaks. We leave dead wood standing, where we can, to allow our wild animals to make use of it.