Iconic Game of Thrones Shooting Location to Undergo Major Change in ‘Essential’ Safety Update

In the Game of Thrones, you win… or you get cut off at the stump.

A grove of beech trees in Northern Ireland that doubled as the HBO fantasy series’ Kingsroad are set to undergo a major safety update that will change their appearance, the country’s Department for Infrastructure recently announced.

The area in question, which is in Belfast and is known as the Dark Hedges, is a stretch of road in which the trees’ branches reach toward each other from opposite sides of the path, creating the illusion of a natural tunnel. Thrones viewers will recognize the setting from when Arya, disguised as a boy, travels north on the Kingsroad with Gendry in the Season 2 premiere. Many fans visit the site each year.

The trees in question are on privately owned land. “Following concerns about the condition of some of the trees, the Department commissioned an independent specialist survey which found that 11 trees, out of a total of 86, along this route are in a poor condition and could pose a potential risk to the public,” the Department for Infrastructure said in a press release.

The work is slated to begin on Monday, Nov. 20.

Have you visited the Dark Hedges? Let us know in the comments!