Alder Copse

Walking into Alder Copse near Horsham feels like stepping into proper Sussex woodland - dense canopy, damp earth underfoot, the occasional flash of a bird disappearing into the understory. It's a working forest rather than a manicured visitor attraction, which means you get the real thing: alder trees in various states of growth, clearings where light breaks through, paths that aren't always obvious.

This is walker territory, full stop. Families with young kids might find it a bit tangled and muddy, though older children who actually enjoy being in woodland rather than on a sanitised trail will have a decent time here. The forest offers proper shade on warm days and that slightly eerie, peaceful feeling you only get when trees genuinely outnumber people.

There's no visitor centre, no café, no facilities that I'm aware of - which is either brilliant or frustrating depending on your expectations. You'll likely spend an hour to 90 minutes wandering through, assuming you don't get lost in the density of it all. Check local weather beforehand; after rain this place becomes seriously boggy.

If you're staying at one of the nearby sites - Raylands Country Park is closest at just over two miles away - Alder Copse works as a proper leg-stretch between other Sussex attractions. It's the sort of woodland walk you do for the walk itself, not for a destination. Honest and unpolished. That's its appeal.