Downpark Common

The forest floor here is soft underfoot, carpeted with pine needles and leaf litter that makes you want to walk slowly and actually notice things. Downpark Common is proper woodland - dense in places, open in others - with paths that wind through Sussex's quieter corner near Petersfield without the crowds you'd find at some of the better-known forests east of here.

What you get is straightforward: a decent chunk of mixed woodland ideal for a couple of hours' rambling. The trees are mature enough to feel genuinely wild, though the paths are well-maintained. Families with younger kids will manage it fine - the terrain isn't technical - but it's not the sort of place to shoehorn toddlers into. Walkers and dog owners genuinely get the most from this one.

There's no charge to access it and no fixed opening hours, which means you can turn up first thing on a misty morning or late afternoon when light slants through the trees and you've got the place to yourself. Budget two to three hours depending on how meandering you want to be.

If you're basing yourself at Bow Hill Farm caravan site just five miles away, Downpark Common makes a natural morning outing before heading elsewhere. It's the sort of working forest that doesn't require planning - just decent boots and a willingness to get properly lost for a bit. Real woodland, without the visitor centre.