Dicker Wood

Walking into Dicker Wood feels like stepping properly off the beaten track - no visitor centre, no car park, just Sussex woodland as it actually is. The forest sits just outside Lewes, close enough for a half-day outing but far enough that you'll forget you're near a town once you're among the trees.

It's a straightforward woodland walk rather than a destination with attractions bolted on. Paths wind through mixed broadleaf and conifer, the sort of place where you notice things - bluebells in spring, birdsong year-round, the occasional muntjac deer if you're lucky. In autumn the colour is genuinely good, and winter walking here is peaceful without feeling bleak.

Walkers will get the most from it. Children might manage an hour, maybe longer if they're the type to hunt for sticks and investigate streams rather than demand an ice cream van. Families camping at Hale Farm Campsite or Golden Cross just down the road have an easy option for getting outside without organisation. It's the sort of place you fit around other plans rather than make the journey for.

Bring proper footwear - it gets boggy in wet weather. No facilities on site, so sort yourself out in Lewes first. The walk itself asks nothing of you except time and the willingness to go without interpretation boards or themed activities. That's either exactly what you want or precisely what will drive you mad. For Sussex woodland without the heritage trust experience, though, it does the job.