"Through Charnwood's breadth their passage lay,
But fearful was the snowy way,
For oft in cavities profound
Down sank abrupt a rocky mound;
And loud through ice the torrent roared,
And hard to find the treacherous ford;
And bogs no stag in June might pass,
In white were veiled - a fluid mass,
And safe on Bardon's craggy side
The trooping wolves might yet abide,
And still with midnight yellings howl
To comrades that on Beacon prowl.
Or follow on the scent of blood
From Bichwood-Hill to Timerber-Wood,
White Iveshead, starting from repose,
Mourns to Lube-Done his purple snows.
Such yells of Bawdon's rock aloft,
O'er meads and folds of Ulverscroft,
Still would the wakeful Friars hear,
And tremble for their wonted cheer!" 

- Rothley Temple, T. Gisborne (1815)

To combine some brief historical notices with the lighter passing subjects of the day has been the writers' aim. If this has been successfully done - if a trifle has been added to the better appreciation of the object of interest and the picturesque beauty of the locality - the chief object which the writer had in view will have been attained.

- Rambles Round Loughborough, T. R. Potter (​1868)

Because of the rocky infertile nature of the soil, there is a close correlation between the underlying geology and the woodland.

History of the Charnwood Forest Landscape, A. E. Squires (1981)