Brayton Barff Through the Seasons.
Set in the Vale of York, South West of the market town of Selby and between the villages of Thorpe Willoughby and Brayton, lies Brayton Barff, a sandstone Hill approximately one hundred and fifty feet in height which was formed by glacial movement during the last Ice Age. It is a significant landmark in an otherwise flat landscape.
Today the site is primarily owned by Yorkshire Water with Selby District Council owning a small patch of the land adjacent to the A63 Selby bypass. A large underground reservoir occupies the centre of the site which delivers water to around 4.7 million customers throughout Yorkshire.
Within the Barff woodland over 40% of the trees are Sessile Oak which are generally found in semi natural woodlands in the north of the country. These trees are so called because its acorns are not held on stalks, like those of the English Oak (Pedunculate), but attached directly to the outer twigs. There are also several English Oak trees as well as some cross-hybrid oaks. These trees are known to support many species of flora and fauna, invertebrates, mosses, lichen and fungi.
During the Victorian times it is thought that the shipbuilders on the east coast would come over to the Barff for selected cuts of timber to build their sea going vessels.
The Barff also has a variety of other trees including Silver Birch, Beech, Sycamore, Holly, Rowan, Scots Pine, Alder, Hawthorne and European Larch. There are also several Yew, Willow, Hazel, Horse Chestnut and Wych Elm. As with similar woodlands there are a variety of bushes, including Honeysuckle, Elderberry, Gorse, Broom and Buddleia.
The history of Brayton Barff is quite vague, apparently during 1803 a beacon was lit on the Barff when the country was threatened with an invasion by Napoleon. In May 1935, to celebrate King George V's Silver Jubilee, a Bonfire was lit on the Barff as part of the celebrations.
Early issues of Ordnance Survey Maps dated 1903 clearly show a rifle range on the Barff, extending out to Mill Lane. During the 
Second World War 1939-1945 a Prisoner of War Camp was built on the site. Today, nothing is left of these buildings less some areas to the South and West of the Barff where some of the brick foundations may be seen.
Between 2001 – 2004 the A63 Selby bypass, 10km twin lane single carriageway was constructed which severed the South West corner of the Barff, adjacent to Selby Golf Course and resulted in a slight redesign of several holes on the golf course. Wooden fencing was erected as a result of this new road running alongside of the Barff and a footbridge constructed over the ‘new road’ following the line of the Bridal way which extends from Mill Lane. Around 2005/2006 a definite 2metre wide limestone aggregate footpath was laid forming a circular path around the outer edges of the woodland. This footpath is approximately 1.2 miles in length and takes about 30 minutes to circumnavigate at a leisurely pace.
In 2012 the Barff was declared an Ancient Oak Woodland and as such throughout 2012 and 2013 significant work had been carried out by the relevant agencies to cut and remove large swathes of non-native trees, creating at that time huge scars on the landscape. Some three years later the planting of the native trees have become well established and are flourishing. Ongoing maintenance work on the footpath around the bottom of the Barff was completed during the Summer of 2016.
A second phase of woodland maintenance commenced during the Autumn of 2019 with the removal of many old and diseased trees and the cutting back of the Gorse and Broom bushes, especially adjacent to the ‘bypass trail’, this work continued through till March 2020 with re planting continuing into April 2020.
Brayton Barff is a popular site for walkers and bird watchers alike and a path circling the outer perimeter of the Barff makes a pleasant thirty minute walk, giving views looking over towards Selby and the village of Brayton as well as the power stations of Drax and Eggborough..jpg)
For the early risers it is a great place to see some stunning sunrises over the villages of Brayton looking towards Drax Power Station, the same with the Sunsets looking over towards Eggborough and Monk Fryston.
The Barff changes with the Seasons and every visit can reveal something new, the woodland is a haven for wildlife. Records show that since 1982 one hundred and twelve species of bird have been seen in the woodland and at least 40 of those have bred here, including Tawny Owl, Buzzard, Green Woodpecker, Spotted Flycatcher, Goldcrest and Nuthatch to name just a few. On average over 70 species of bird are recorded each year. Further details of the bird life on the Barff can be found on the Brayton Barff Group Facebook page, especially the posts from Derek Cooper. Today ‘The Friends of Brayton Barff group’ led by Derek and a small team of volunteers help keep and maintain the cleanliness of the site as well as recording the wildlife and bird sightings.
The Barff is also home to fifteen different species of mammals, including Muntjac Deer, Pipistrelle Bat, Fox, and Field Vole.
Over eighty species of plant and wildflowers have been recorded, included Bee Orchid, Northern Marsh Orchid, Wood Anemone, Marsh Ragwort, Bluebell, White Bluebell, Bittersweet and Purple and White Foxgloves. Over twenty species of Butterfly have been recorded, including Marbled White, Brown Angus, Speckled Wood, Comma and Brimstone.
During the Autumnal months fungi thrives in this woodland environment, species including Fly Agaric, Beefsteak Tree Fungi, Chicken of the Wood, Sulphur Tufts, Stinkhorn, Ink cap, Puffballs and Hoof Bracket are just some of the many varieties that can be found here.
Click on the galleries shown below to expand the albums.
Saturday 28th February 2026
It has been a dull, grey and damp start to February on the Barff, with very little sunshine and lots of periods of prolonged rain. How much longer the rain will continue I wish I knew, we seem to have had some form of precipitation nearly every day for several weeks now. The ground has become quite heavily waterlogged, and the perimeter footpath has become very wet and muddy in places.
Though on Saturday 14th February we woke up to a bright and sunny morning, an overnight frost, with a temperature of -2c, rising to 5c by lunchtime. It was a day of clear blue skies and bright sunshine, such a contrast to the first two weeks of the month. The following day the weather returned to being dull, grey and overcast with drizzle and light rain for most of that day and the week ahead.
We have had several yellow weather warnings for snow and ice during February, but up to now the snow has avoided our part of the county.
The wet weather seems to have forced the early shoots of the Bluebells through the leaf litter, with more emerging daily, forming a huge green blanket across the East and Southern sides of the woodland, unfortunately many will be suffocated by the emerging brambles. Fresh shoots of Holly leaves are appearing on the Holly bushes though Roe deer seem to be taking quite a fancy to them, and Elderberry bushes are also coming in to leaf. Several clusters of Snowdrops around the perimeter footpath are in full flower, along with Blackthorn, which is flowering along the Bypass trail, the flowering gorse bushes are adding a welcome splash of colour to the woodland during this spell of gloomy, grey and overcast weather. Daffodils will soon be becoming into flower and several which catch the early morning sunshine have already started to open adding additional splashes of colour to the woodland, especially around the Barff summit.
Lesser Celandine, (flowering in places) Cow Parsley, Nettle, Dock, Dandelion, and Foxgloves are thriving around the Barff, especially along the perimeter footpath and
fungi continues to thrive with all the damp and wet weather we have been having recently, Birch Polypore, Hairy Curtain Tail, Scarlet Elf Cups, Sulphur Tuft, Turkey Tail, Yellow Brain Fungi and Jelly Ear fungi in particular continues to grow in several places around the woodland.
Despite the weather birdsong never ceases to amaze me in the Woodland, the unmistakable sound of the Song Thrush and Mistle Thrush always puts a smile on my face, their strong unmistakable dulcet tones stopping me in my tracks as they deliver their melodic and tuneful song, be it on the summit of Tap Hill or along the Bypass Trail it is always a joy to hear especially during February. Robin, Wren, Blackbirds, Long Tailed Tits, Dunnock, Nuthatch, Blue Tits and Great Tits to name just a few continue to be heard all around the woodland. It is always special though to see and hear our resident Buzzard family as they call and soar high above the woodland. Our resident Greater Spotted Woodpeckers have become more vocal too of late and can be heard most mornings drumming away on the trees surrounding the car park area.
Grey Squirrels remain active on the Barff, be it scratting amongst the dead leaves on the woodland floor in search of food or scampering up amongst the tree branches as they play a very energetic game of tig with their siblings, I often hear them chattering away to their mates in the morning.
Although I walk most areas of the Barff daily with Meg and Gracie, I have not seen or heard a great deal of activity behind the security fence on the Barff summit certainly not since before Christmas.
As the month draws to a close, the grey, damp and wet weather has continued, the temperature fluctuating between 2c – 10c, occasionally we get a short-lived sunny spell before the rain returns again. Sunny days on the Barff during February have been few and far between, but very much appreciated.
As Winter comes to a close, the Barff will shortly transform itself into a vibrant woodland again with Spring just around the corner, the days are already getting a little longer (more daylight). We can look forward to watching the Bluebells come into flower, along with the delicate yellow flowers of the lesser celandine and the white star shaped flowers of the wood anemones. We can also look forward to watching the Ferns fronds start to unravel and look out for the arrival of the Brimstone Butterflies and the defining call of the arrival of the Chiffchaff, a true sign that Spring has finally arrived.
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