Our guide to visiting The National Forest, England

You don’t really expect one of the boldest rewilding initiatives you’ve ever visited to be in the English Midlands. But there it is: 520 sq km of Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Staffordshire, linking the ancient woodlands of Charnwood in the east and Needwood in the west. Perhaps it’s so unexpected because when the project was launched 30 years ago, and signs were erected to welcome people to the new ‘National Forest’, it didn’t have many trees.

Back then – and long before the benefits of rewilding became more widely known – this former heartland of coal and clay mining was one of the least-wooded parts of the country, with just 6% forest cover. In 2024, following the planting of some 9.5 million trees, the National Forest’s coverage reached 25%. The before-and-after shots are mind-bending, especially those of the landscapes around Moira and Donisthorpe. Here, the humongous scars of open-cast pits have been replaced by lakes, meadows and woodlands. It’s a transformation from black to green.

The area’s mining heritage hasn’t been forgotten, though. Elegant ironwork info boards tell of its past, respecting the grief that was felt from the loss of such an important industry. But the creation of the forest also offers a wide-reaching and forward-thinking vision for the area. It’s about how this project can boost everything from biodiversity to food security, health and well-being, as well as carbon capture, commercial businesses and tourism, making this a slice of the country that people want to both live in and visit.

It’s a destination that offers a very warm glow indeed. Fortunately, there’s plenty to see and do too. Those early planted woodlands are now maturing, creating wonderful places to walk and cycle. There’s also a sense of connectivity – not just from seeing patches of trees merge, but through businesses working with the National Forest and each other to innovate and thrive. There are regenerative farms that have become attractions, a country house hotel (Hoar Cross Hall) powered by National Forest waste timber, artisans offering courses in woodwork, and more.

It’s possible to cycle (or e-bike) right across the forest on traffic-free cycle paths, towpaths and quiet backroads, via a selection of community woods, historic ruins and stately homes. While doing so, it’s easy to forget that you’re in one of the most densely populated parts of the country. The National Forest is a world-class rewilding success right on our doorstep.

48 hours in The National Forest

Start in the west, beginning your journey at the Deer Park. This inspiring family farm has reintroduced deer to the area, created a 5km nature walk and hosts indie shops and an extremely good café – stop in for breakfast (deerpark.farm). Next, be awed by the nearby Church of the Holy Angels, a resplendent vision of Victorian Gothic hiding in the countryside. Then take a walk along Jackson’s Bank, through replanted ancient woodland of Scots pine, oak and cherry; in spring it’s a riot of bluebells and wild garlic. After that, move eastwards into the heart of the forest, via Rosliston Forestry Centre (in the mid-1990s, 120,000 trees were planted here; roslistonforestrycentre.co.uk), towards Moira. This area was the most heavily mined in the region. Learn more at Moira Furnace Museum (moirafurnace.org) and revel in the black-to-green transformation at Hicks Lodge (forestryengland.uk/hicks-lodge). The lodge is home to the National Forest Cycling Centre, complete with café, bike hire (from £11/40 per hour/day) and trails that weave around the former mining landscape, which is now a delight of lakes and woods. Finish at The Tap at No 76 (tollgatebrewery.co.uk) in Ashby-de-la-Zouch with a local Tollgate ale.

The Tollgate Brewery lies just north of Ashby, in the former milking parlour of the Calke Abbey Estate. Walk there along the National Forest Way (it’s about 5km), stopping for beer and pizza in the taproom. Loop back via the charming hamlet of Staunton Harold, where a fine manor and church preside over landscaped parkland and a stable block crammed with craft shops and cafés. Alternatively, plunge deeper into Calke by walking or cycling the estate’s Tramway Trail through the old limeyards, learning about reintroduced dormice and visiting the Baroque-style Calke Abbey house, an ‘unstately home’ that the National Trust maintains in a condition of atmospheric decay. From here, the handsome market town of Melbourne is close – don’t miss the Norman church. Or make a beeline for Charnwood. It’s not only an ancient woodland but an aspiring UNESCO geopark, home to some of the oldest animal fossils ever discovered. The star geosite is Bradgate Park, where you can wander amid grazing deer, the Tudor ruins where Lady Jane Grey once lived and unique rock formations. Finish with a pub supper at the friendly Wheatsheaf in Woodhouse (wheatsheafinn.net).

“Pack a picnic and take an evening wander through Feanedock and Boothorpe, in the heart of the National Forest. Amble up the hill, find a bench (I love the yoga-pose one) and admire the view as the sun sets. Just 30 years ago, this was a scarred mining landscape, with little tree cover; today, the tree canopy stretches for miles. It’s a place of transformation, hope and possibility.”

Sue Jerham, National Forest E-Bike Holidays (ebikeholiday.co.uk)

Get crafty with Peter Wood (yes, that really is his name). A master bodger, and the founder of Greenwood Days, Peter runs woodworking courses – everything from chair-making to bowl-carving – at his outdoor woodland workshop near Melbourne (from £120pp; greenwooddays.co.uk).

Remember soldiers, sailors, war horses, war widows and many more at the National Memorial Arboretum (thenma.org.uk). Opened on a former gravel works, alongside the River Tame, it’s a vast, moving and always changing place of remembrance in honour of those lost while serving their community or country.

Forest Bathe in one of the 400 woodlands that scatter the National Forest. Each has a different story to tell. Try exploring the Outwoods, where some of Charnwood’s oldest trees grow around 700-million-year-old rocks, or the Minorca Woodlands, where a 19th-century coal mine is in the early stages of transformation into a forest.

Walk the National Forest Way, a 120km trail that wiggles across the National Forest, linking the National Memorial Arboretum and Beacon Hill Country Park. It’s broken into 12 linear stages, ranging from 6.5km to 12km. Circular walks using the trail have also been designed – try the 17.5km Birthday Walk, linking ten woodlands planted in the National Forest’s first decade.

Getting there

Slap-bang in the middle of England, the National Forest is sandwiched between the M1 and A38, with the M42/A42 cutting though. The main rail gateways are Tamworth, Burton upon Trent, Leicester and Loughborough; the proposed reopening of the Ivanhoe Line would bring trains to Moira and Ashby-de-la-Zouch. There’s an excellent network of cycle paths. National Forest E-bike Holidays organises bespoke trips (ebikeholiday.co.uk). See nationalforest.org for more details.

Hastings Retreat (hastingsretreat.co.uk) is a handful of wind-powered barn conversions near Moira, costing from £80 per night; it’s also the home of the Naughty Hare gin micro-distillery. The homely Staff of Life pub in Ticknall, near Calke Abbey, has B&B doubles from £110 per night (thestaffoflife.co.uk), while the eco-friendly cabins at Charnwood Wigwams cost from £98 per night (wigwamholidays.com).