west moors village trail
West Moors is accessed via the B3072 (Station Road) which runs through the centre of the village. Ferndown to the south; Verwood to the north. Take a tour with us around the village of West Moors and discover some of the delights.
Approaching West Moors on the B3072 from Ferndown, just before you enter the village centre take the first turning on the right into Pinehurst Road. Not far up the road on your right you will see one of West Moors places of worship, St Anthony’s Church, further down the road on the right Pinehurst Road Chapel. If you carry on almost to the bottom of Pinehurst Road you will find a small parade of local shops, one of which is Pandoras, the village bakery. At the very end is the A31.
Returning up Pinehurst Road to the beginning, turn right,
back into Station Road, directly on your left you will
see
West Moors Village green, known as the Petwyn where you will see the war
memorial which has been situated there since the 1970’s.
Immediately to your right is one of the two public houses
in the village The Elephant and
Castle. You will now see ahead of you on
either side of Station Road, local shops serving the community. As you
pass the shops look over over to your right, on the corner of Moorlands Road
is found
West Moors United Reformed Church.
On the opposite corner of Moorlands Road, the West Moors village Library.
There are many enjoyable walks in and around
West Moors, one being a riverside walk.
Take Farm Road
(opposite the Library) right down to the very bottom, turning left into
Mannington Way you will see a gate directly ahead of you. As you approach
and enter through the gate there is a sign for the Riverside walk. Follow
the sign. To your left there is a woodland,
Pennington Copse, a local
nature reserve looked after by East Dorset Countryside Management group. There is a
diversity of wildlife to be found here from deer, to the occasional adder and
many bird species.
On a clear day you may hear an eyrie cry, look skyward, and you are likely to
see one, or maybe two buzzards soaring around or if it is at dusk, it is
likely to be the Tawny owl!
Carry along Station Road
you will notice the second pub in the village, The Tap and Railway previously
called the The Railway Hotel. This area
was
once the location of West Moors station on the Castleman Railway named after Wimborne
Solicitor,
Charles Castleman
(1807-1876) who had been at the forefront in getting the track extended into West Moors .
Take a look at at an old map of West Moors and it's Railway in
the year 1890/1 (Also known as Castleman's Corkscrew , so called because of it's winding path)
The Junction station of West Moors was opened on 1st August 1867 and saw it's demise on 4th May 1964, due to Dr Beechings' programme in the 1960's. As Chairman of the newly formed British Railways Board he was to carry out a radical overhaul of the railway, which culminated in many stations and thousands of track being closed. This must have been a sad time for the community of West Moors. Take a look at the West Moors railway picture gallery.
Just beyond the Tap and Railway, you will find the West Moors Memorial Hall and Social club. Directly behind these you will find the West Moors Memorial Bowls club and further behind, the West Moors Skatepark. Further up on your right you will see St Mary’s Church. Next left after the Memorial Hall is Bond Avenue, go into Bond Avenue and first left, is where you will find the Youth Centre.
Travelling on towards Three Legged Cross, to your left stands Gulliver's Farm. This farm was once owned by one of Bournemouth’s most notorious smugglers, Isaac Gulliver (1745-1822), although the original house was rebuilt after having been burnt down.
Further along on your left you will find Sturts Farm; with approximately 90 acres of land, offering adult farming community work possibilities, covering a diverse range of activities. The farm also boasts a farm shop selling a range of products from bio dynamic and organic products to a full range of fresh fruit and vegetables.
Finally, lying on the outskirts of the village is one of West Moors very important aspects of the life and community, the Defence Fuel Group