The Brick Hole

A proper woodland walk through old quarry land that's gone a bit wild - that's the Brick Hole near Shrewsbury. What you're looking at is the legacy of the brick-making industry that once fed the region's building boom, now reclaimed by nature into something rather lovely. The quarry pools have turned into a destination for walkers, and the surrounding forest has grown thick enough that you feel properly away from it all despite being just minutes from the edge of town.

The appeal here is straightforward: it's a decent walk through mixed woodland with enough of a story to stop the kids from asking how much further we're going. The water features catch light nicely on a clear day, and it's the kind of place where you notice things - newts if you're lucky, or just the quiet that proper forest gives you. Bring wellies if you've had rain. The ground gets boggy in patches, and that's half the charm.

For caravan holidays at Sunnyside Farm or Oxon Hall, this makes a solid half-day outing. It's close enough not to eat up your entire morning, but interesting enough that walkers won't feel shortchanged. Families with children aged seven upwards will get something from it; younger kids might find it a touch dull after the initial scramble around the quarry edges. Check conditions before you go - it's not the sort of place that stays dry for long after rain, and there's limited parking nearby. Allow a couple of hours if you're taking it slowly, less if you're just after a brisk leg-stretch.