Dog walkers have been left furious after seeing a “beautiful” woodland torn to shreds and littered with glass.

Gill Prince was walking her 11-year-old dog, Honey, with her friend Rachel this morning when she saw the damage to the grassland at the top of King’s Wood car park in Challock.

Describing it as an “awful mess”, the Challock resident said there were remains of a car scattered around the area, including the front grille of a Ford.

“I also spotted a wheel, a car radiator and a fan,” she said.

“There was also glass which looked to have come from a car windscreen.

“It was really shocking and upsetting to see all the damage.

“I was worried my dog might injure herself on the broken glass so I kept her on the lead until we went past the damage just to be safe.”

Mrs Prince believes the incident could have happened over the weekend and has since contacted the Forestry Commission which owns and maintains the land.

Following her visit this morning, she posted about it on Facebook and other residents told of their upset at the damage caused.

“I couldn’t believe what I was seeing,” one person replied.

“There’s loads of broken glass laying about too so be careful walking your kids and dogs. Makes me so angry.”

One resident commented the area was in this state on Sunday morning and that they thought it was down to “Saturday night joyriders”.

Another simply said: “It's a disgrace.”

Philippa Read says she visits King’s Wood three to four times a week to walk her dog but was so upset to see the mess left behind today.

“I really hope these people are caught,” she said.

“It’s so awful I feel really upset about it.”

She is now calling for cameras to be put up around the site in a bid to prevent this sort of thing from happening again.

“I wish there were cameras up there – so much damage to such a beautiful, peaceful place,” she said.

“It’s a special place to me – my happy place.”

A police spokesperson said officers are investigating a report that off-road vehicles caused damage to a picnic area and car park in King's Wood.

“The damage is believed to have been caused between Saturday, April 6 and Sunday, April 7 2024.

“Anyone with information that might assist investigators is urged to call police on 01843 222289, quoting reference 46/56264/24.

“You can also contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111 or by using the online form on their website.”

The Forestry Commission has also been contacted for comment.