Ness Wood

Ness Wood Country Park comprises 50 hectares of mixed woodland known as Ness, Ervey and Tamnymore, in the sheltered Burntollet Valley. The main feature of the Park is a spectacular waterfall (the highest in the province), from which the Park derives its name, based on the Irish "an las" or Ness meaning waterfall. After the last ice age, ten thousand years ago, the old Burntollet River course was choked by glacial boulder clay deposits. Ineroding a new channel through the underlying metamorphic schist rocks, the river has created the magnificient waterfall, gorges, potholes and rapids which are a feature of Ness Wood today. Ness Wood is a remnant of extensive natural oakwoods, now commemorated by over 1,000 place names in Ireland containing the word "Derry". This is an anglicized form of the Irish for "Oakwood". The earliest evidence of local human settlements are the Bronze age remains at Slaughtmanus, Ballygroll and Mullaboy.

During the Early Christian period, it is believed that St Patrick founded the church of Commyr (now Cumber), afterwards burned by the Norse in the ninth century. Later, the area became part of the O'Cahan's territory in North Derry, until the 1641 rebellion, after which the last O'Cahan forfeited his lands.

With the plantation of Ulster in the seventeenth century, the wood was allotted to the Grocer's Company, one of the London Guilds charged with planting County Derry and subsequently to the Stevenson Estate. These new owners clear-felled the oaks and introduced a variety of species, including beech, sycamore, sweet chestnut, silver fir, larch, cherry laurel and rhododendron. However, the steep-sided nature of Ness restricts the removal of timber and this, combined with vigorous natural regeneration, has ensured the continued survival and predominance of native species. These are mainly the oak, birch, rowan and holly, along with ash, hazel, alder, willow and elm.

The Park Code

Visitors to the Park should remember the Park Code:-

• Protect wildlife, plants and trees.
• Take all litter home or use the bins provided.
• Ensure all dogs are kept under control and not allowed to foul paths and mown grass.
• Guard against all risk of fire.
• Make no unnecessary noise.
• Cycling and mountain bikes are not permitted in the Park except on vehicular roads.
• A river has natural hazards - supervise children and stay clear of the water

Facilities

• 1 Carpark - 25 Cars
• 2.2kms of paths ( East Bank path temporarily closed. )
• Picnic Area & Meadow
• Information Panel

Access & Booking

Open daily Easter - end September from 9am to 9pm
October - Easter from 9am to 5pm.

The Visitor Centre is currently under construction and  will open daily from June 2009 - end September from 10am to 6pm
October - Easter from 12am to 4pm Sundays only.

Outdoor Pursuits & Camping Prohibited.

For Information Contact - Warden Staff at Roe Valley Country Park

Tel 028 777 22074
Fax 028 777 66571

Getting Here

Located 4.5kms NW of Claudy and 13kms SE of L/Derry, Signposted from the A6, via Oughtagh Rd to a car park to the NE of the site.