Grizedale Forest

Location

Grizedale is located between Esthwaite Water and Coniston. Parking always used to be a problem here, but they've created a larger car park a couple of years ago, so chances are you shouldn't have a problem now.
To reach the forest from the North you need to take the A591 to Ambleside, leave Ambleside A593 to Langdale/Coniston. First left B5286 to Hawkshead. Bypass Hawkshead follow B5286 south then first right at tourist sign "Theatre in the Forest", follow to Grizedale approx 2 miles.

Or from the South M6 junction 36 take A591 first exit A590, Barrow follow A590 past Newby Bridge Havethwaite Crossroads, right turn, tourist sign "Grizedale Forest Park", follow signs for Satterthwaite/Grizedale north.

During the high season (Easter to Oct/Nov) you can reach Grizedale via the Cross Lakes Experience, where you can arrive from either Coniston Water or Bowness Pier. There’s also a bus service that runs from Hawkshead to Grizedale to Newby Bridge.

The Forest

At the old car park (which is still useable) you'll find the visitors centre, the shop, the cafe and a massive playground for the children which is all wood and looks like a ship. There's also a place to hire cycles and the Go Ape tree top experience, where those over the age of 10 can swing through the trees and clamber around 19 metres in the air!! I have to say I've never tried it, the trees would probably bend under the weight, but I've watched people doing it and they always look like they are thoroughly enjoying it, and I admit I'd love to have a go on the zip wire. It's open for children over 10 and adults, currently the prices are £20 for children up to 17 and £25 for adults.

For the less adventurous among you there are several different walks around the forest, all of differing difficulties and distances. Some of the walks are free of stiles, so they are suitable for wheelchair users, although none are actual pavemented walks, so they might still be hard going depending on the style of wheelchair, because I know some are far more difficult to push or handle than others. The other walks range from a 1 mile blue walk which is classed as easy to a 9 and a half mile orange walk, which is classed as strenuous. The walks are all marked out with arrows of certain colours along the route, so you don't accidently go along a more difficult path. All in all there are 8 marked walks. The forest is also home to the country’s largest off road cycling facility, it has 5 marked cycle routes of differing difficulties.

As you're walking round you'll find statues hidden among the trees, I say hidden, some of them are quite obvious and out in the open, but the kids love to be the first one to spot the next statue. The statues are mostly made of natural materials, although some of the newer ones are metal rather than wood. Some of the figures are interactive, for instance you can play the forest xylophone.

At the beginning of the forest close to the Go Ape area there is a small stream running through the forest. Providing they have wellington boots on this stream is just right for the children to jump in and splash about, without any worries about it being too deep.

Visitors Centre

The visitors centre is open all year round, except for Christmas week. It opens at 10am each day and closes between 4pm and 5.30pm depending on the time of year (later opening during the summer). The visitors centre has details of the walks and cycle trails, they have leaflets which show all the walks, but as previously mentioned all the walks are well signposted with colour co-ordinated arrows. They also sell souvenirs, and just across from the main centre there’s a small cafe which has hot and cold snacks as well and hot and cold drinks, although they are a little expensive, so I’d advise packing a few of your own drinks. There are indoor and outdoor seats, the outdoor seats are also available for anyone who wants to take a picnic.

On the opposite side of a small stream you’ll find a cycle hire shop, so you don’t have to take your own cycles, the latest you can hire a cycle is 3pm, and it has to be returned by 5pm.

Also close to the visitor’s centre is a large children’s park. The playground has a large wooden structure in the centre which is shaped like a pirate ship, and has slides and climbing frames. This is usually being used by children aged 10 and under, with a few children around 11-13, after that age it seems like it isn’t ‘cool’ enough to be used.

Just outside the Visitors Centre you’ll find the Theatre in the Forest. There are different plays and performances going on through the year. For instance the Brewery Art will soon be performing their hilarious adaptation of Shakespeare’s Richard III.

The forest is busy nearly all year round, but during the summer you’ll find the area very busy. This means you are unlikely to find any quiet time around the visitors centre, and the shorter walks will be quite crowded. No matter which walk you decide to take I would recommend you plan for a full day at Grizedale, the scenery is beautiful and despite what I mentioned earlier about crowds, you’ll still be able to find some time and space to enjoy the tranquillity of the forest.

Final Opinion

I love going to Grizedale because there's something for everyone. My children love it because they enjoy the playground, they love to hunt for new sculptures, and they really love jumping in the stream!

I find the cafe and shop expensive so we generally take our own food and have a picnic, and will just buy an ice cream or something small during the afternoon if we need to.

The routes are well signposted (and by signpost I don't mean great big ugly things that spoil the forest, they are small and don't detract from the natural beauty), however, if you don't pay attention, or head off without looking to see which colour is which, you might find yourself on a much longer walk than you thought. As I did once when I ended up on a cycle trail not a walk, and 4 hours later was starting to worry that I'd never get back. Although in a way it was a wonderful mistake because it took us up quite high and the view was outstanding.

A lovely day out, that's well recommended.

South Lakes Wild Animal Park

South Lakes Wild Animal Park is about 10 minutes away from us, so we visit at least twice a year, and we are never bored. It’s not so much a zoo as an animal experience.

How to get there

The zoo is in Dalton in Furness, a small town in South Cumbria. It’s about 30 minutes from the M6 motorway along the A590, or you can get there by train or bus. If you’re using public transport you’ll have a 10-15 minute walk from the nearest bus stop and a 20-30 minute walk from the train station. There’s a free car park, unfortunately this isn’t the biggest car park in the world and gets full rather quickly. There is an overflow car park and staff will be out to direct traffic is necessary, the over flow car park is a couple of minutes walk from the zoo entrance.

Admission Information
Adult: £11.50
Child 3-15: £8.00
OAP: £8.00
Under3's: FREE
Friend of the Park: £1.50

Opening Times

4th April 2009 - 1st November 2009
10am - 5.00pm
Last admission 4.15pm



The park is fairly unique in that many of the animals are free roaming, or are allowed to roam within their own areas in amongst the visitors. The free roaming animals are found in the Australasia section of the park, with lemurs, kangaroos, emus, etc. Food can be purchased at 50p a bag to feed the emus and the ducks. The lemurs are the only animals in that section that cannot be fed or stroked by visitors. The lemurs are the funniest animals in the zoo, they pretty much go wherever they choose, and are not afraid of people at all but they can bite, which is the reason you’re not allowed to feed them. Being approached by an emu can be a little scary at first, but they are quite gentle when taking the food from your hand.

Also in that section there is a large walk in aviary, with parrot and vultures, visitors can watch the vultures being fed daily. This bit is only open to walkthrough when the keeper is there, if you go early in the morning you might find that the keepers are all busy elsewhere, in which case you can view the birds from outside the aviary.

Another great feature of the park is the high walk ways. These allow visitors to see the animals from above, and in the case of the tigers on their climbing frame, the visitors can see them on the same level with no bars to spoil the view.

The owner of the park also began the Sumatran Tiger Trust, so every day there is a talk on the work of the trust just before the tiger feeding. The zoo is quite proud of the way in which the tigers and lions are fed. It is unique in that the meat is attached to 6 metre poles and the cats have to climb for their food. This stops the cats becoming overweight because they actually have to work for their food. During the summer the walkways can get very crowded because everyone wants to see the cats climbing, so you’d be just as well to get to the walkway early and hang around for a while. It might seem a bit boring, but the wait is worth it, to see the power in the animals.

The park is great for kids, as well as being able to feed the emus, ducks etc, they are able to join in with the lemur feeding under the supervision of the park staff. They can also help to feed the penguins and giraffes. They also have a ‘Meet the Snake’ time, where visitors can see a snake close up, and have the opportunity to stroke one.

Food

There are indoor and outdoor tables for taking picnics, and there’s also a restaurant on the site. They serve a limited range of hot foods, but they’re all of good quality, and they have a selection of cold snacks.
Beware though, there are no lockers in the zoo, so you’ll either have to carry your picnic around, or you will have to leave it in the car until you are ready to eat.

Accessibility

The zoo is fully accessible for the disabled. There are very few steps on the walkways, and where there are a couple of steps they have a ramp beside them. The elevated walkways are all accessed by walking up ramps.

It might not be the biggest zoo in the world, but I think it is the best thought out and the owner is interested in the conservation of animals not just creating a tourist attraction.

Barrow in Furness

Barrow in Furness, as soon as I say those words 99 times out of 100 the reply will be 'where’s that?’ Except when you're speak to people from Barrow that is. I thought I'd write this little guide in case anyone was coming to the area, especially as we have cruise ships arriving at the docks now, so more and more tourists are finding us.

~Where is it?~

Barrow in Furness (or Barra as it's known) is in South Cumbria within the Furness peninsula. Still no idea? Well the easiest way to describe it is, just south of the Lake District or not too far north of Blackpool.

The A590 takes you from the M6 and straight to Barrow and is nicknamed the world's largest cul-de-sac, because it comes into Barrow then the only thing to do is turn around and go back out again.

~About the Town~

Barrow is an average sized town, with a population of around 60,000. Originally part of Lancashire, it’s now part of Cumbria.

The town was built up around the shipyard; most of the original housing was built to house the workers. The shipyard however is now past its heyday and most of the engineering work and factories have closed or down sized dramatically, so the main employers are now the local Health Authority and retailers.

~Local Points of Interest~

*Shops*

Barrow is not known for its shopping, most of the shops are confined to two streets, with the highlight being Debenhams. Other national retailers include, Gamestation, Jessops, M & S, and Body Shop. But the majority of the main shopping street is made up of charity shops or banks, with many of the shops at the present time being empty.

There is also a small out of town Retail Park, which houses the likes of Next, Comet, Currys and Tesco Extra.

As well as Tesco, other supermarkets include Asda, Morrisons and 6 branches of the Co-op.

*Pubs and Clubs*

Barrow has the same variety of pubs as the majority of towns in the country. There are the usual drinker’s pubs, and the food lover’s pubs, plus one pub with a 'Fuzzy Ed's' attached for children to play.

Along Cornwallis Street (also known as The Gaza Strip) are Barrow's nightclubs. There are 6 clubs which all open until the early hours of the morning. In addition to these clubs there is also the Princess Selandia, a floating nightclub and restaurant.

*Food*

There are cafes and restaurants a plenty in Barrow. There are Chinese, Indian, Italian, Thai and English restaurants. Take aways selling Chinese, Indian, Pizza, Kebabs, Baked Potatoes, Fish and Chips. Then of course there are McDonalds, KFC, Pizza Hut, Subway, and plenty of small local cafes in the town centre.

*Tourist Attractions*

Barrow only has one real tourist attraction to call its own, Furness Abbey. A 12th century ruined abbey, once belonging to the Cistercian monks, now it’s part of English Heritage.

There is also the Dock Museum, a small museum dedicated to all things maritime, and celebrating Barrow's links with the sea, and telling the history of shipbuilding in Barrow.

Just outside of Barrow, in a town called Dalton in Furness there is the South Lakes Animal Park. In my opinion one of the best zoos in the country. Not only does it have a great selection of animals, but it offers people (and children in particular) the opportunity to interact with many of the animals; Lemurs, emus, penguins and giraffes.

~Other Things To Do In Barrow~

Barrow has a beautiful park at its centre. In the past few years the play area has undergone a transformation with the old roundabouts and swings being removed, and climbing frames, zip slides and an interactive Bop It style play frame installed.

In 2008 the second play area was bulldozed and a concrete skate park was built, which is extremely popular with the skate boarders and stunt bike riders.

Also in the park there's a mini golf course, bowling greens, a greenhouse and a lake with swans and geese. During the summer there is boat rental with rowing boats and pedal boats.

The Park Leisure Centre has also undergone a £1m refit, with improvements to the gym. At weekends it holds a roller disco (there's a blast from the past) and the hall can be booked for children's parties, badminton, table tennis etc. The swimming area has a training pool, and a leisure pool with a wave machine and water slide.

Barrow also boasts two different types of beach. On Walney Island you'll find a stony beach with a small play area for the children and generally an ice cream van in attendance.
At Roanhead there is a beautiful sandy beach with plenty of sand dunes to ensure you can find a nice quiet spot. There is a permanent shop, but it is very small and only sells the bare necessities for the beach. Parking is also at a premium at Roanhead, which means on a sunny day you really need to get there early to get a parking space.

When the weather is bad, and presuming you have children there is always the Custom House. This is split into two zones, the play zone for the very young, which has a soft brick play area, and the laser zone, where older children can have fun shooting at each other with laser guns. There is also a restaurant for the adults.

Of course Barrow is only 20 minutes or so away from the Lake District which offers countless attractions.

~My Thoughts~

I've lived in Barrow for years, interspersed with times away due to work commitments and I can only say, of all the placed I've live Barrow is by far the best.

Okay it’s not the most dynamic place; it's generally a few years behind the rest of the world when it comes to new innovations. But it’s also relatively quiet, there is some trouble on occasion, but what town doesn't? And compared to the big cities you could almost say it’s a trouble free zone.

I am not afraid to let my children play out, and that means more to me than being at the forefront of development.

I think at some points everyone thinks their home town is dull, the council are only in it for themselves, or they wish there was more. But I am happy with Barrow as it is, for me it has everything it needs, anymore and it would spoil the area.

~Anything Famous About Barrow?~


Chewits once described themselves on their advert as 'Even chewier than Barrow in Furness bus depot'.
Emlyn Hughes the England and Liverpool FC footballer was born in Barrow and now has an office block named after him.
Dave Myers, one of the Hairy Bikers is also from Barrow.

I hope that has given you a little insight into Barrow.