Long Ridings

The Essex woodland around Billericay doesn't immediately grab you as somewhere special, but Long Ridings - a proper chunk of forest just outside town - proves there's decent walking territory here if you know where to look. It's a straightforward forest walk through mixed woodland, nothing fancy, but it fills an afternoon well enough when you're based at one of the nearby campsites.

The trails wind through mature trees and the occasional clearing. It's the sort of place where you notice things if you're paying attention - bird life, the smell of the wood after rain, the changing light through the canopy. Nothing dramatic. Families with primary-school-age kids will get a solid couple of hours out of it without complaint. Serious hikers won't find it challenging, but it's a proper leg-stretcher rather than a stroll around a field.

If you're camping at Barleylands or Stuarts Wood - both within striking distance - this makes a good morning or early afternoon break from campsite life. The advantage of Essex forest walks is you're rarely fighting crowds, though that's partly because they're not shouting about themselves. It's free to access and you can spend as little or as long as you fancy in there.

Go when it's been dry for a few days if possible. Muddy woodland isn't anyone's idea of fun. Leave the teenage phone-starers at base camp - this needs you to actually look around to be worth your time.