Although mainly a seaside village, the 60-acre wood in Courtown provides a source of shady respite from the nearby beach.
During the 1860s and 70s, James Stopford, the 5th Earl of Courtown, established a pinetum in the grounds of Courtown House. Trees remaining from his collection include a Californian redwood, swamp cypress, Japanese cedar, a cedar of Lebanon and numerous pines, yews and true cypresses. Look out for a yew tree planted as part of the collection, but felled years ago, continuing to grow adjacent to the River Walk.
In 1870, the woodland was planted with oak and ash at a greater distance from the house. This was fairly typical for a Victorian estate woodland; the exotic conifers and redwoods were planted within view of the house and the oaks further away.
4 waymarked easy walks now wind through the woodland, each one between 1 and 1.9km in distance.