Hamsterley Forest is a commercial forest in County Durham operated by the Forestry Commission. It is the largest forest in County Durham and covers more than. Recreational activities are promoted within the forest and are focused at the eastern end, around the . In addition to the visitors' centre, there is an adjacent cafe, an education room, toilet facilities, and an independent bike shop called Wood'n'Wheels, which also hires out bikes.
History
During the 1930s, the forest was planted and tracks were built by unemployed men supplied through the Ministry of Labour. Most came from the mining communities and shipyards of the North East of England. They were housed in one of a number of instructional centres created by the Ministry, most of them on Forestry Commission property. By 1938, the Ministry had 35 such centres across Britain. These were basically work camps, where unemployed men carried out heavy labour and lived on site in wooden huts. The centres were closed in 1938 as unemployment declined in the run-up to war, but some of the huts can still be seen around the visitors' centre, which was originally built as the camp's refectory. The visitors' centre was part of a prisoner of war camp during the Second World War. A number of Mesolithic, Neolithic, and Bronze Ageflint tools have been found in the forest in Doctor's Gate Quarry. An area of the forest is probably the site of a 15th century iron ore processing site. An area next to Linburn Hall Wood was the site of a medieval convent. An episode of Time Team in 2008 examined a large stone structure known as "the Castles", with walls five metres thick. It appears to date from the late Iron Age and may have been an animal enclosure.
Mountain biking
Mountain bike trails are developed in the forest by , which were constituted on 5 January 2004. There are three official routes: Blue, Red, and Black, all of which are waymarked with colour-coded marker posts. A previous Green route has since been removed. "The Loop" is a skills development circuit that includes features such as rock gardens and north shore obstacles. Features are graded from blue to black; therefore, helmets should be worn, and it is not suitable for occasional/family cyclists. Descend, a private club established in 2000, operates mountain bike 4X and downhill courses in the area south of the grove. See also for more mountain bike rides in the area.
Other activities
The forest is home to other activities, such as walking and horse riding. The forest has also been host to the RAC rally over many years as well as other rallies, including the Hamsterley Stages Rally, which has been known since 2009 as are active in the forest, with regular events starting at the visitors' centre.
