If you go down to the woods today...

There is nothing better than a weekend off work to go explore the great English countryside, pub lunch included. So today we took the opportunity to return to Chopwell Forest (we visited a few weeks ago).

So after a short drive we arrived in the carpark. Spacious and free. Despite the number of cars we only met a handful of other people in the woods. From the carpark there is a choice of three marked circular routes, this time we opted for the red walk.

All the routes are clearly marked with arrows to keep you on the right path. The paths are mostly even ground  and very easy to follow. It does look like there are paths 'off-road' that I'm sure will be explored in the future.

More information on the forest itself can be found here

Freddie absolutely loves exploring the forest: having a good old sniff, running in and out of the trees and in true spaniel manner getting his paws, belly and tips of his ears very very muddy. (He was far too excited to be his usual photogenic self, so here are a few pictures of him having a good old explore).

After a gentle stroll we made it back to the car park; muddy and hungry. Last time we visited we drove past The Red Kite, to our delight they are dog friendly. So we decided to stop there,  advertised as dog friendly with a sign by the door, welcoming dogs and their well behaved owners in, by the door there was a basket of towels to wipe down muddy paws and a polite notice asking to keep dogs off the carpet and furniture. The pub was cosy, warm and inviting and the food was delicious, Freddie sat under the table hoping for something to drop to the floor. There is a lovely little beer garden which I'm sure we will visit in the summer.

Lots of woof,
 Freddie&Chloe x