Langass Woodland

A community woodland on the northeastern slopes of Ben Langass in the south of North Uist in the Outer Hebrides, Langass Woods lie 5½ miles (9 km) west southwest of Lochmaddy. Originally laid out by the Forestry Commission in 1969 as part of an experimental project to examine the growth of conifer trees in an exposed coastal environment, the principal species planted at Langass were Canadian and Alaskan varieties of Lodgepole Pine and Sitka Spruce, which were known to grow well in similar climates. The wood was extended in the 1990s by the North Uist Estate. In 2002 the Forestry Commission had no further use for the woodland and management passed to the North Uist Woodland Trust (Urras a Craobh Uibhist a Tuath) in 2005.

On an island with no native woodland, Langass Woods provides a unique environment for trees and wildlife to flourish. The North Uist Woodland Trust have worked to improve the biodiversity and access to the woodland for recreational and educational purposes by locals and visitors alike. The Trust have laid out the Hercules the Bear Paw Print Trail to commemorate the adventures of a 'pet' grizzly bear which ran free for 24 days having escaped while filming a television commercial on the island in 1980 before being recaptured, having achieved international celebrity. There is a life-sized statue of Hercules in the woodland, and the bear was buried here in 2015. When his owner, friend and wrestling partner Andy Robin died in 2019, he was buried next to the bear.


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