In recent times, Coilté (the Irish State Forestry Company) have planted large areas of the slopes of the Slieve Bloom Mountains with commercial forests of pine trees.

Fortunately, some woods of native Irish trees survive and offer very rare samples of how the Irish countryside looked over a thousand years ago.

There are surviving natural woods of cecile oak, beach, silver birch and even intact hazel woods. These are extremely sensitive natural habitats and must be respected and preserved for this and future generations. Ideal walking territory.