Copse Lake

Tucked away between the busy roads around Chichester, this modest lake offers a proper slice of countryside calm just minutes from the cathedral city. The water itself is nothing spectacular - think local fishing spot rather than Lake District grandeur - but it's precisely this unpretentious character that makes it worth seeking out.

Anglers make up most of the regular visitors, casting lines from the grassy banks in peaceful contemplation. Families staying at nearby Chichester Lakeside Holiday Park often wander over for an evening stroll, though kids might find more excitement back at the holiday park's facilities after twenty minutes of lake-gazing.

The surrounding woodland provides decent cover for a picnic if the weather's playing ball, and dog walkers seem to have claimed the place as their own. There's something rather soothing about watching the ripples spread across the water while traffic hums distantly beyond the trees.

Don't expect facilities or formal footpaths - this is very much a 'take it as you find it' sort of place. Best combined with a trip into Chichester proper or as a gentle leg-stretcher if you're based at one of the holiday parks dotted around this corner of West Sussex. Half an hour here is plenty unless you're planning to fish.