What’s the thing that’s kept you going during these interminable lockdowns? For me, it’s been walking in my local forest, Ruislip Woods. Ruislip may be the acme of suburbia, a maze of bungalows and crazy paving – but Ruislip Woods is only a short walk away, and it’s vast.
As I’m sure you’ve discovered yourself these last few months, there’s nothing quite like a walk in the woods to alleviate the lockdown blues. It feels great to go somewhere entirely unaffected by Coronavirus, a place where this pesky pandemic seems utterly inconsequential.
A forest is a precious place in any part of the country, but to me Ruislip Woods feels particularly special because it’s managed to survive despite being entirely within London. Wandering around this wooded wilderness you’d never guess you were only a few miles away from bustling London suburbs like Northwood, Eastcote and Pinner.
At 305 hectares, Ruislip Woods is the biggest forest in London (Epping Forest is larger, but much of it is in Essex).
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