Michael Wood, Gloucestershire

Michael Wood, originally Mickle Wood, is a relatively large expanse of 20th century broadleaf and coniferous trees, lightly managed for timber, but on an ancient woodland site, underlain by neutral soils above mudstone bedrock (the Micklewood Beds) - a slightly elevated site, the land sloping down on all sides, most steeply to the south, where the wood is bordered by the Little Avon River. The surroundings are low-lying farmland, part of the Severn Vale, 15 miles north of Bristol.

Mickle is an old English word for great, and this 'Great Wood' was once much larger, extending another mile eastwards to Nibley at the foot of the Cotswold escarpment, and most likely a lot further north as well. The woodland is referenced in several documents from the 13th century and earlier. In recent times it extended one mile north to south, until construction of the M5 in the 1960s, right through the wood, leaving a small detached portion to the north and the main area to the south, now around 250 acres. The Michaelwood services are within the wood, near junction 14.

Despite its location atop a small plateau, the soil is quite moist and two small seasonal streams flow, towards the east and west margins. The wood also contains the long-disused Damery Quarry along the south edge and, close by, a medieval or possibly Anglo-Saxon earthwork, Damery Camp.

Despite the absense of any warning notices, it would appear that Michael Wood is entirely private, and the public are not permitted to enter.

The Woodland

A network of tracks cross the flat terrain of Michael Wood, used to access all areas. The majority of the trees are conifers but deciduous specimens are still numerous, beech the most prominent species. The undergrowth is light and the trees quite photogenic, so the wood would be a relaxing place for a walk, and is particularly good for fungi in the autumn.