The Bottle Lake Forest fairy village that magically mushroomed in size during the COVID-19 lockdown is on the move.
Later this month Christchurch City Council park rangers will oversee the careful relocation of the hundreds of home-made fairy houses that are hanging on trees in Bottle Lake Forest Park, near the Juliet Road entrance.
The first of the tiny houses appeared in the forest before the COVID-19 crisis, but they grew dramatically in number during the Alert Level 4 lockdown when creating fairy houses became a popular pastime for local families.
“They’ve brought a touch of magic to the forest,’’ says Bottle Lake Forest Park ranger Warren Hunt.
“Unfortunately the spot where the fairy village is located is in an area of the forest where the trees will soon be ready for logging.
“We love seeing the look of delight on children’s faces when they see the fairy village so we’re going to carefully detach the fairy houses from the trees and move them to another part of the forest, so the fairies can continue to live an enchanted life,’’ Mr Hunt says.
“We’re going to need some help moving the tiny houses so we’re organising a working bee from 10am on Tuesday 29 September. It’s in the school holidays so we’re hoping lots of families will come along and help us to relocate the houses.’’
When the fairy houses are relocated, they will be tied to the trees rather than nailed or screwed on. This is to prevent the trees being damaged.
People keen to help with relocating the fairy houses can register their interest on the What’s on webpage.