Hertfordshire Walker: Walk 234: Northaw Great Wood Red Trail

0.75 miles (1.18km) with 28m of total ascent

The red trail at Northaw Great Wood

This is one of the shortest walks on Hertfordshire Walker and is one of three in Northaw Great Wood. It's ideal for those who are unable to walk a great distance and need easy access to the trails from a car park. However the red trail, although short, does involve some up and down with a total ascent of 28m. Some of the paths can be muddy after rain. The route has plenty of shade if you want to escape the heat.

Getting there

Unfortunately, there are no bus stops within reasonable walking distance of Northaw Great Wood. The nearest are 1.5km SSE along The Ridgeway at the junction with Hanyards Lane (location - https://w3w.co/locked.beans.calms) which are served by the number 308 and 380 buses. You can check bus times at Intalink.

There is a large car park (location - https://w3w.co/lunch.wounds.jelly). You will need to have £1 in change for the parking fee honesty box.

According to Friends of Northaw Great Wood the main gate to the car park at Northaw Great Wood opens every day (except Christmas Day) at 8am and closes at 6pm during the summer (1st April to 31st October) and 5pm during the winter (1st November to 31st March). The car park and toilets close promptly at these times, so allow plenty of time to return to your vehicle to avoid being locked in for the night.

There are toilets next to the car park but there are no refreshment facilities or any pubs or cafes within easy walking distance of Northaw Great Wood. You will find picnic tables and benches along all three trails, and visitors are encouraged to take their rubbish home for environmental reasons - because wild animals rummage in the bins at night and make a mess.

Northaw Great Wood is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). The 223.6-hectare (553-acre) was once part of a huge Norman wood with mostly birch, oak and hornbeam. The historic woodland is managed by Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council with help from volunteers who belong to Friends of Northaw Great Wood.

Fly through preview of walk

If you want to check what sort of landscape you will be crossing before you set off on this walk you can view a 30-second video (below) of the route. The video is created using the free version of Relive.

Directions

Map for Walk 234: Northaw Great Wood Red Trail
Click on the map above for a larger version
Created on Map Hub by Hertfordshire Walker
Elements © Thunderforest © OpenStreetMap contributors
There is an interactive map at the foot of this page

Those with GPS devices can download GPX or KML files for this walk. We've added What3Words location references for those who use that system. If you print these walks you might want to use the green PrintFriendly icon at the bottom of these directions to delete elements such as photographs.

The map and GPX navigation file on this page are for the red trail. We have also created a map and GPX navigation files for both the yellow trail, which is 2.75 miles, and the blue trail which is 1.45 miles.

All three trails are signposted but not all forks are marked, which is why we have created separate walks for all three with GPX navigation files which you can use to follow the routes using satellite navigation (GPS) on a compatible mobile device.

The honesty box for the £1 car park fee is in the wall of the green information and toilet block (location - https://w3w.co/desks.prone.mass).