With the increasing number of people using the Ruislip Woods the paths in winter are developing into a problem. They become very muddy, and consequently wider and wider as people try to skirt around the wet areas. This results in large bare areas which do not recover in the summer, and with the loss of interesting flowers such as Bluebells, Wood Anemones, and Yellow Archangel. The Ruislip Woods Management Advisory Group is looking into this problem.
Boardwalks have been constructed in some places, but it is an expensive business. Laying solid paths is not considered an option. They would interfere with the flow of surface water and create new problems. But more particularly this is natural woodland. Not a municipal park, but a bit of countryside.
CB. 25.2.2015