Discover Selby park, Selby wildlife pond, Brayton Barff Woods and Fairy Pin Well. A 3.8 mile flat route with very little incline.
Table of Contents
The Route
- what3words for start point: ///open.powers.hawks
- Start Point: Selby Park, 165 Bawtry Rd, Selby YO8 4PW
- Finish Point: Brayton Barff Woods, 53 Barff Ln, Brayton, Selby YO8 9ET
- Distance: 3.8 Miles
GPX Route Map
Download file for GPSWalk Description
Discover Selby park, Selby wildlife pond, Brayton Barff Woods and Fairy Pin Well. A 3.8 mile flat route with very little incline.
The Oak Trail instructions:
1. Follow Station Road and take a left onto The Crescent. Take a right next to Thomas the Bakers and take a left to follow the road down to Selby Wildlife Pond.
2. Back at The Crescent take a left and join New Lane (after Edinburgh Woollen Mill).
3. Continue on New Lane until a right turn to Massey Street, which will lead you to Union Lane. This will then join Doncaster Road.
4. Heading down Doncaster Road, turn right just after St. Wilfrid’s Church then left across the field to Foxhills Lane, continuing across onto Moat Way.
5. Follow the path and waymarks through the estate and into the field to pick up the path to Cross Gates Level Crossing.
6. Continue along the A1238, Leeds Road and take a left along Fox Lane next to the Fox Pub.
7. At the end of Fox Wood turn left onto Field Lane and continue until you reach Brayton Barff.
Stop 1. Selby Park. Selby Park boasts five acres of ornamental plants and shaped shrubs, with a stone obelisk dedicated to those who lost their lives in the war. Play a round of mini golf or bowls and then take an hour to relax with a picnic, under the many specimen trees.
Stop 2. Selby Wildlife Pond. The wildlife pond is a short walk from the town centre with lots of benches, making it the perfect spot for a picnic. Take some time to identify the many species of butterfly the pond attracts or the wide variety of bird life, including moorhens and other wildfowl.
Stop 3. Brayton Barff Woods. Take a stroll through this ancient planted woodland, where pathways are lined with towering oaks, sycamores, Scots Pines and Norway Spruce. If your visiting in Spring, why not bring a camera to photograph the carpet of bluebells that start to emerge in April?
Stop 4. Fairy Pin Well. Brayton Barff Woods was once the sight of ‘Our Lady’s Well’ until it was filled and covered when the reservoir was extended in the 1960s. However, the magic surrounding the well still exists today. According to local folklore, Brayton Barff was home to ‘Faerie folk’ who would unsuccessfully hunt with bows and arrows made from the pointed spikes of the Hawthorn Tree. However, the faeries noticed women passing through the woods carrying fashionable metal pins in their hair and clothes, that would be perfect for hunting. The faeries came up with a cunning plan to acquire these metal pins and began to offer the women a trade. For every woman who dropped their metal pin into the well, in return the faeries would reveal the identity of their true love or future husband, with his face reflected in the waters of the fairy well.
