As you are strolling through Gait Barrows National Nature Reserve this month, you may notice a lot of activity near Little Hawes Water and Hawes Water. This is because Natural England have been granted funding to carry out work to restore the rare and internationally important habitats of marl grassland and alkaline fen at the reserve and to improve the visitor experience.

In order to achieve this, the following work is planned:

• an area of beech plantation and secondary woodland adjacent to Hawes Water will be removed and the timber extracted in order to reconnect the grassland and fen on the lake edge to the adjacent grazing pastures and to restore open views of Hawes Water from the pastures to the east and north;
• the remaining area of beech plantation will be thinned in order to allow more light into the understorey and allow future management;
• conservation grazing by native breed cattle will be introduced into these areas in order to ensure appropriate ongoing management of the grassland and fen and create a mosaic of open habitat, trees and scrub;
• a small sluice gate will be installed in the man-made ditch that flows from the smaller Little Hawes Water into Hawes Water, in order to allow control of water levels and reinstate more natural hydrology; and
• the existing boardwalks will be removed and a new raised wider boardwalk will be installed in order to improve disabled access.

For more detail, see the Natural England project overview and map of planned work or click on the FAQ link below to find answers to the questions we get asked most about the project.

FAQs

Please note that during the works, some footpath closures will be in operation for safety reasons. You can find alternative routes on the map provided.