CELEBRATING FIFE 2010…
Woodland Awakenings – a Celebration of Snowdrops

West Fife Woodlands is delighted to have been able to join forces this year with Cambo Institute and Falkland Heritage Trust to form a unique partnership for the 2010 Fife Snowdrops Spectacular.

This follows three successful years of offering Valleyfield Woodland Park and its wonderful displays of snowdrops as a participating venue in VisitScotland's annual Snowdrop Festival.

Working with our partners we are able to offer visitors not just walks through Fife’s most enchanting landscapes and hidden trails, but also an insight into three of Fife’s treasured historic estates and their designed landscapes.

This year’s national Snowdrop Festival is from 1 February until 15 March, with 37 participating venues, stretching from the Borders up to the Highlands. Details can be obtained at www.visitscotland.com/snowdrops.

Organised events at Valleyfield Woodland Park are from 6 February until 7 March. There is no charge but donations will be gratefully accepted.

The woodland is a public place and visitors are free to explore its delights at all times throughout the year. It is unmanned except when West Fife Woodlands’ members are present.

Guided walks

These follow a carefully chosen trail through carpets of naturalised snowdrops and remnants of a Humphry Repton designed landscape, his only work in Scotland. Join experienced guides who will tell you about the former Valleyfield Estate and life in Georgian times.

The walks take place on the weekends 6/7, 13/14, 20/21, 27/28 February and 6/7 March, starting at 2 pm from the Shiresmill car park serving the wood. They last approximately 1 hour, after which refreshments are available at the nearby Riding for the Disabled Association centre.

A large scale map of the snowdrop trail can be found on display at the carpark, along with a supply of helpful leaflets, for anyone wishing to enjoy the walk at other times.

Alice in Woodlands

Young actors, aged 7 to 11, from Kinetic Youth Theatre are performing an adaptation of Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland, entitled Alice in Woodlands. This drama has been specially created by Kinetic Theatre’s Creative Director, Graeme Shape, to reflect the charm and beauty of a woodland setting.

Performances are on Sundays 14, 21, 28 February and 7 March, starting at 3 pm and lasting approximately 1 hour.

Dark Skies

Don’t miss this one-off Valleyfield event on Saturday, 20 February, when the Edinburgh Observatory’s Dark Skies team are at the Riding for the Disabled Association centre with their inflatable Starlab Planetarium.

This is an opportunity to learn more about the galaxy we live in and its stars and planets, with activities for all ages, including comet making demonstrations and rocket making/launching.

Sessions start at 3.15 pm and 4.05 pm.

Dark Skies resumes in the evening with Stargazing introducing the Night Sky (with an astronomy talk if the skies are not clear).

Sessions start at 6.15 pm and 7.05 pm.

All sessions last 45 min. Space is limited and therefore booking is recommended to avoid disappointment. Tickets available from the Dunfermline tourist information centre, tel: 01383 720 999.

Contact Details and Getting There

Valleyfield Woodland Park, near Shiresmill, West Fife, KY12 8ER, tel. 01383 720 999.

Click here for Google Map.

Details of Woodland Awakenings’ other partnership events can be found at www.centreforstewardship.org.uk and www.camboestate.com.
For information on more hidden gems in Fife’s year of culture, visit www.fifedirect.org.uk/2010