Waterpark Woodland Trail Major Carrigaline Tidy Towns Project

Writes Leo McMahon

If you go down to Waterpark Woodland today, you’re in for a big and beautiful surprise!  Thanks to the trojan efforts of members of Carrigaline Tidy Towns, the picturesque area near Waterpark pond is being rejuvenated into a popular walking and nature trail.

No one has worked harder on this eco-friendly venture than project leader Alan Desmond, Ard na Ri, Carrigaline, who outlined to The Carrighoun progress at the time of writing.

Waterpark Woodland Trail, located near Carrigaline’s Men’s Shed and the pond, is something which had been mooted for some time and initial clearing of overgrowth on paths and removal of ivy weighing down trees was carried out by a small group of Tidy Towns workers in February 2023.

Alan who joined Carrigaline Tidy Towns six years ago, said it was at a committee meeting last January, that instead of embarking on another sculpture project, he suggested grant aid from Cork County Council be used  in taking on the wood at Waterpark because it was shame that such an important natural area wasn’t being utilised.

‘The committee backed me as project manager. The work is based on three phases and the first thing we did was to get Noblewood, Ballyfeard in to do the necessary heavy cutting and forge the pathways in February and March. They were in there two weeks but members of Tidy Towns also did a lot of work at weekends’.

Alan created and marked out with Noblewood a main circular path part of which was then covered with limestone hardcore and wood chippings to prevent people slipping and their footwear getting muddy.  There are also three other paths and all are interlinked.

Tidy Towns erected a main sign with near the entrance and two other signs about 50 metres away at either end of the pond.

‘From April and May, I was joined by fellow Tidy Towns volunteers to carry out further clearance work and heavy duty cutting on other paths. Some of the briars were eight feet high.’ Wood from fallen or felled trees were cut recycled by Alan to make logs to shape and serve as kerbs along the paths.

      Most work is carried out on Tidy Towns work days (Tuesday mornings from 10am  Wednesday evenings in summer from 7pm and Saturday mornings from 9.30am or Tuesday mornings at 10am year round, but Alan himself is busy in there up to four times a week such is his passion for the project. 

Some members of Carrigaline Tidy Towns at the entrance to Waterpark Woodland Trail

‘Going into the summer, we built two staircases in the wood where the ground rises for easier access using recycled railway sleepers with branches from trees for handrails,’ said Alan.

There was, and continues to be, ongoing maintenance and while there was some vandalism to signs and other items inside the wood, this has somewhat petered out with more and more people using and respecting the new amenity. 

Autumn has seen planting by Tidy Towns of around 3,500 woodland flower bulbs in bunches such as bluebells, woodland anemone and grape hyacinth plus daffodils for colour.  Alan himself has also planted hundreds of foxgloves he has propagated from seed himself with many more on the way for Tidy Towns bio-diversity projects. The wood also has boxes from the Irish Bee Conservation Project which are functioning well.

Some or all of the plants will end up not only in the wood, but also the Community Park, the Owenabue Parklet near the Tidy Towns hut, the butterfly garden on Ballea Road, on roundabouts and other public spaces as well as in some pots and containers.

Having carried out clearance work, laid out a section of gravel or wood chip pathway and initial planting in 2025, the plan for phase two at Waterpark Woodland is to expand on this to all paths, to ensure 12 months a year use, plus more suitable planting, signs and some seating. Phase three has yet to be determined but suggestions (e.g. fairy trail) are welcome and there will always be ongoing maintenance.

Maintenance has included in recent months, the removal by Tidy Towns volunteers of hundreds of bottles and cans plus general litter from the undergrowth dating back decades.

Keen Gardener

‘I’ve always loved gardening even though where I grew up, a terraced home in the city at Rockboro Road near the South Infirmary, Cork, had only two post stamp gardens,’ said Alan. 

His path to becoming a member of Tidy Towns was through entering its local garden competition, the awards night for which is a big date on the Carrigaline calendar. Alan was a winner five times in different categories such as best front and back garden, best floral and best wildflowers and best overall.  The judges, he recalled, included Betty O’Riordan and the late Mary Foley.

The garden of Alan and Lorraine (postmistress at Passage West) Desmond and daughter Ciara at Ard na Ri is simply amazing. There’s a polytunnel for propagating flowers, almost entirely for Tidy Towns, and a greenhouse and raised beds where he grows a variety of garden fruit and veg. Nearer to the house, the garden is beautifully landscaped with shrubs and it’s equally stunning at the front with a lawn to envy. He has his own composting and plant feeding areas.

Mainly from his polytunnel, Alan propagates from seeds or slips, foxgloves aqualesia (also known as granny’s bonnet), orange calendular, verbena, fuschia and other plants including the above mentioned woodland flowers. He also helps out with fellow Tidy Towners in the Potter’s Corner tunnel off Owenabue car park and was part of a group which suppled planted wildflower seeds along the revamped Bothar Guidel this year. All of this saves the voluntary group a significant sum in spending on planting in the locality.

Asked why he is such an active gardener and member of Tidy Towns, Alan  added: ‘I never stop. I love it and I’m proud of where I live’.

In September, a representative of Super Valu and a cameraman visited Carrigaline and viewed the work of the Tidy Towns volunteers, including the wood and were clearly impressed.

On November 8^th, at the invitation of Tidy Towns chairperson Niamh Brody, Peter Haferkamp from Crosshaven, a certified arborist and tree consultant with Care4Trees.ie walked the Waterpark pond area and a section of the wood with Carrigaline Tidy Towns members.  He pointed out the different trees, some up to 200 years old, and stressed the importance and serene atmosphere of the wood despite its close proximity to busy roads and its undergrowth for mammals, birds and insects and how best to care for all of this.

A section of the Tidy Towns adjudicator’s report on Carrigaline’s 2025 entry stated:  ‘The outstanding point of the visit was the discovery of the new Watepark Woodland Trail and the natural path through the trees. It was amazing to be so close to nature while being so close to a town.  Your work on phase one can only lead to great expectations for phase to. The adjacent pond also is a highlight with its floating duck hotel’.

It further stated: ‘The woodland trail is a great piece of work. Your overall Tidy Towns five year plan notes the intention to carry out a survey of the flora and fauna and that will be of great interest. It will complement the planned mapping in your Older Trees Project’.

High praise indeed to which Alan said: ‘Waterpark Woodland Trail has become a popular amenity and I just want to see more people use and enjoy it.’

Carrigaline obtained 390 marks out of 550 in the 2025 Super Valu Tidy Towns competition, up 15 on last year and only 10 behind national winner, Carrick-on-Shannon. It won the gold medal in its population category for the fourth year running and other awards. New members are always needed and most welcome. It is based at the hut at Owenabue car park.