Belcham's Copse

Walk into Belcham's Copse and you're immediately wrapped in proper Surrey woodland - the kind with dense canopy, tangled undergrowth, and that earthy smell that means you've left the A24 behind. It's a modest forest by scale, but dense enough that an hour in here feels like a proper escape rather than a quick stroll through the park.

The main draw is straightforward: walking. There are paths threading through the trees, nothing challenging or waymarked, which means you pick your own route and occasionally get a bit lost, which is half the fun. Dog walkers love it. Families with reasonably mobile kids will get a good hour out of it without complaints, though under-fives might find it a touch dull unless they're the type to get excited about sticks and moss. History types won't find much - it's genuinely just woodland, no ruins or information boards to read.

Close to Dorking, it works well as a mid-morning adventure if you're based at Henfold Lakes or The Green Escape glamping just down the road. Not a destination in itself, but brilliant if you're doing a few spots across Surrey. Free to visit, obviously, and you can wander in anytime the light allows. Go when it's been dry - after rain it gets boggy fast, and you'll come out looking like you've done an assault course rather than a gentle woodland walk.