A magical forest

Ashclyst Forest is one of the largest woods in East Devon and a haven for butterflies, bluebells and birds. With car parking and waymarked trails Ashclyst is a great place for a walk on the wild side.

Ashclyst is the largest woodland on the Killerton estate and is the perfect place for a wildlife walk, family ramble or dog walk. There are several waymarked trails and there are several car parks from which to start your adventure.

Wildlife

The forest is well known for its wildlife, including deer. Bluebells carpet the woodland floor in spring, deer can be spotted, and nesting birds fill the tree top canopy, with nightjars  churring in summer evenings. 

Butterflies are the main wildlife attraction in Ashclyst. The mix of habitats supports a great variety, though they fly at different times of the year. The rarest butterflies are the white admiral, small pearl-bordered fritillary, dark green fritillary, purple emperor and silver-washed fritillary. You can expect to see orange-tip, ringlet, common blue, large skipper, gatekeeper, speckled wood, marbled-white and green-veined white too. 

If you'd like to discover the butterflies of Ashclyst then try the butterfly walk which starts from Killerton house car park.

Getting to Ashclyst

Ashclyst is a few miles from Killerton house with it's car park, toilets, cafe and shop. It is sign posted and easy to find. There are lots of places to park around the forest, but the main car parks are Ashclyst Forest car park and Caddihoe.

Ashclyst is also a great destination for a bike ride, or to bring your horse for a hack in woods.