Life

Tony Bailie's Take on Nature: Colin Glen, from refuse to woodland refuge

The Mass Rock at Colin Glen includes an altar and the priests chair. Picture by Mal McCann
The Mass Rock at Colin Glen includes an altar and the priests chair. Picture by Mal McCann The Mass Rock at Colin Glen includes an altar and the priests chair. Picture by Mal McCann

THE smell of wild garlic hanging in the air is almost tangible, as if you have stepped into a fusion restaurant rather than a small woodland on the fringes of a city.

The distinctive ramson leaves are abundant alongside the pathways in Colin Glen and these can be gathered and used to make stock, soups and sauces – it is a bit early in spring for the white flowers, although one or two are visible and these can also add a punch to your foraged meal.

Colin Glen Forest Park is a long finger of woodland along the lowlands of Divis Mountain, and is defined by the fast-flowing Colin River. Planted on a reclaimed landfill site, the area was transformed into a woodland during the 1980s and 90s.

The suburbs of west Belfast meander along either side of it, but the higher you climb into it the wilder it becomes, with nothing but the sound of birds in the trees which are coming back to life after their winter rest. A thrush was taking the vocal lead, with blackbirds and the distinctive and repetitive whoo whoo of a wood pigeon providing the backing vocals.

The holly trees stand out because of their leaves, the whitethorns are in leaf, but haven’t yet flowered, while the first buds are just coming through on the birch. Last year’s brown mummified leaves are still hanging on the oak and these will linger for another few weeks until they are pushed off by newcomers.

Well-marked graded trails take walkers up through the woodland, with diversions for the more adventurous along smaller tracks.

Gruffalo and Stick Man trails have been laid out featuring characters from the children’s novels by Julia Donaldson and illustrated by Axel Scheffler – a great incentive to bring younger visitors into nature and hopefully encourage an appreciation of our woodlands.

And there have also been more practical efforts to engage young people with the forest. Around 60,000 of the trees in Colin Glen were planted by schoolchildren from across Belfast.

Starting off at a visitor’s centre on the Stewartstown Road, the trek upwards is moderate and can also be used as a starting point to continue upstream to the Upper Colin Glen and up on to Divis Mountain via the Dixon Trail.

Colin Glen is also rich in folklore and history. On the upper part you can find the Colin Mass Rock, which was used during penal times, when Catholic Masses were banned. One story recalls a Presbyterian woman called Belle Steel who used to keep watch out for the English priest hunters on behalf of her Catholic neighbours as they secretly attended Mass and call out a warning to them if danger was approaching. The Bell Steel Road in nearby Poleglass is named after her.

The Colin River was also an important resource in Belfast’s linen industry which took off in the 17th century and thrived for nearly 200 years, making Belfast a major global exporter and driving the city’s growth.

Part of the river was diverted to along an aquaduct, known as a mill race, to drive water wheels which powered the linen mills. The remains of the mill race can still be seen.

Folklore from the area tells the story of the Black Bull of Colin Glen and Den McGaw who battled the sidhe – or the fairy folk.

The glen even had its own Robin Hood in the figure of Ness O’Haughan whose farming family were dispossessed during the Plantation. Ness became a highwayman who stole from the rich to help out poor farmers and hid out in Colin Glen.

He was known as The Rapparee of the Belfast Hills until he was captured in 1720 and hanged in Carrickfergus.