A RANGER'S weekly wade knee-deep in water to the other side of a beck is set to come to an end.

Forestry Commission recreation ranger Mike Innerdale will soon find it easier to carry out site visits at Coatham Stob woodland, near Long-newton, Stockton, thanks to a donation from BP's Teesside to Saltend Ethylene Pipeline Project.

The donation of more than £5,000 will pay for a bridge to link two areas of the Tees Forest, which are currently cut off by the meandering course of Coatham Beck.

The bridge, which is part of a wider plan by the Forestry Commission to create more access routes within the woodland, also means visitors to the site will no longer face a detour along Urlay Nook Road.

The route will be accessible by a variety of countryside users, including walkers, cyclists and horse riders.

Jeff Clegg, pipeline project manager, said: "We welcomed the opportunity to be involved in a project which promotes safe access for all to the countryside."

Andrew Smith, forest district manager for Forest Enterprise, said: "The bridge is a vital component in the woodland's recreational development and will link the recently created car park and Millennium Copse to the rest of the site.

"The new bridge not only increases the recreational potential of the site, but also gives visitors the opportunity to explore the area's wildlife, which includes water voles and deer."

The timber bridge will be installed by the Forestry Commission over the next few months.