Jumping into Zachariah’s Pit

Zachariah’s Pit, Common Wood  Penn South Buckinghamshire

It is hard to fathom for what purpose this bowl, some twenty foot deep and surrounded by beech trees, was created to serve.  Located at the southern end of Common Wood near Penn it is a mystery.

The wood is so called because for well over a thousand years those living in the surrounding parishes had rights of common. Surrounding heathland was grazed and the woodland provided fuel and materials for houses, tools. Clay, sand and flints were also mined from the woods.

More recently the Penn and Tylers Green residents bought 248 acres of the wood so we can continue to enjoy rights of access to the 150 plant and tree species, 85 fungi and 40 species of birds.