Dale Coppice

Dale Coppice cloaks the eastern valley slopes above Coalbrookdale and adjoins the open space of Rough Park in Madeley.

There has been woodland cover here since at least the 13th Century when it was part of the estates of Wenlock Priory. Dale Coppice also became noted for its early public walks, the Sabbath Walks, laid out by the Quaker ironmaster and philanthropist Richard Reynolds in the 1780s. The Trust reinstated many of the paths in 2003, working with local groups to add wooden seats at convenient resting points.

Dale Coppice is ancient semi-natural woodland, where today sessile oak and beech dominate. The wood is also home to many different species of bird and mammal, including sparrowhawks, woodpeckers, tawny owl and the noctule bat, one of the UK's largest bats.

Dale Coppice can be explored along a network of paths, many of them corresponding to Reynolds' Sabbath Walks, which are described in detail in the Trust's publication: Coalbrookdale: 3 Historic Woodland Walks.



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