With its beautiful castle, fine old houses and distinctive shops, Ludlow is a fortunate town. It is blessed too, with Whitcliffe Common, 42 acres of steep woodland rising from the River Teme and marvellous views of the town from the open grassland at the top. Ludlovians and visitors of all ages make the most of this beautiful place; many of them walking or running here every day, with or without their dogs.
For hundreds of years it was grazed by commoners’ sheep and cattle; those households with commoners’ rights also cooked and kept warm with firewood gathered here.
Continuous munching by livestock and hay making would have shaped the common very differently to how it is today, with far fewer trees and much more open grassland. Grazing continued to be profitable until the Second World War. After this fewer commoners exercised their rights, though some animals continued to forage here until the 1970s. Slowly the grassland areas, with their varied range of wild flowers, began to disappear under bushes and trees.
A group called the Whitcliffe Commoners was formed in the 1950s to look after the common, but with little money to spend it was a struggle. By the time the Friends of Whitcliffe Common was established in 1996, the woods were growing dense and the remaining grassland overgrown. In the ten years since they have managed the common much has been achieved. More than 600 tonnes of timber were taken out to open up views, create glades and prevent rotten trees falling across paths. Hay-making has been resumed on the grassland to bring back the flowers.
It became fashionable to promenade here in the 18th century but it was not until 1850 that the Bread Walk was laid out. With its romantic landscape of siltstone cliffs, waterfall, ferns and panoramic views Whitcliffe would have been much appreciated. Even its shadiness has a certain gothic charm; with the sun just briefly touching the riverside path early on summer mornings.
Along the river you may sometimes see a kingfisher, dippers and grey wagtails. In spring the fine old oaks at the top are a favoured nesting place of pied flycatchers, and redstarts while wood warblers nest in the beech-clad slopes. Hawfinches used to come to feed on the seeds of the hornbeam trees; but they have not been seen for several years, a loss echoed in other parts of the country too.
Shropshire Wildlife Trust will be working closely with the Friends of Whitcliffe Common to ensure that it stays that way.
