Glenbower Wood is a long narrow wood stretching along the Dissour river. Glenbower gets it's name of "gleann-bodhar" or "Deafening Glen" from the noise the Dissour makes when rushing headlong in winter through the valley. Due to the valley the forest slopes down towards the river and the terrain is quite physical in places. There is a good network of large paths throughout the forest and to ensure you don’t get your feet wet there are numerous bridges crossing the river – the Metal Bridge, White Bridge, Black Bridge and Green Bridge. The northern and southern most region of the map is comprised of forest run. Glenbower Lake existed before the dam was breached manually in 1989. The dam was constructed during the 1860's, its original purpose was to provide a head of water to drive the waterwheel providing the energy for the now disused mills in the centre of the village. Prior to its destruction, the lake and its surrounds provided a valuable amenity area.
UPDATE FEB 25 - The first footbridge has been damaged and is closed. So is the nearby picnic area due to the obvious and precariously suspended falling trees. Stay on the North side of the river. Looped walks are still possible via upstream crossings.
A little nostalgia here,as my kids named the GZ after one of their (and my) favourite kids stories 'The Gruffalo' by J Donaldson, 1999. It just popped into their heads as we searched for a name and gave us cause to recite it as we walked, remembering the ould days!!! 'A mouse took a walk through the deep dark woods. A fox saw the mouse and the mouse looked good. Where are you going to little brown mouse? Come and have lunch in my underground house. It's terribly kind of you, Fox, but no - I'm going to have lunch with a Gruffalo..... and this is where they imagined the Gruffalo might live!
Bring a sharp tool (penknife or similar) to access the cache, it will not be accessible without! BYOP.