Springwells Plantation

The woodland around Springwells Plantation near Thirsk is proper walking territory - the sort of place you head to when you want an hour or two under the trees without faffing about. It's a working forest rather than a manicured attraction, which means you get genuine woodland rather than gravel paths and interpretation boards at every turn.

What you're doing here is straightforward: walking. The plantation itself is mixed woodland - mostly conifers with some broadleaf mixed in - and it's the kind of place that works well if you're based at one of the nearby lodges like Woodland Lakes or Camp Kátur. The trees are tall enough to shut out the noise from Thirsk, and there are enough paths to spend a couple of hours without retracing your steps, which families with restless kids will appreciate.

Go in autumn or spring rather than summer when it can feel a bit airless under the canopy. Winter's fine too if you don't mind mud. The forest doesn't have facilities that I'm aware of - no café, no car park with a proper entrance - so treat it as a local walking spot rather than a destination in itself. It works best as part of a broader day out in the area rather than something to drive across North Yorkshire specifically to see.

Really, this is the sort of place where you park up in Thirsk, grab a coffee, then take a woodland walk to blow the cobwebs off. Decent enough, but don't expect anything fancy.