Explore gets puzzled at Puzzlewood
A lovely summer day and this time we're off to the Forest of Dean with our picnic.
We went to Puzzlewood where my husband has been wanting to visit for quite a while now. Firstly we met a few animals, namely the ducks and the Shetland ponies.
In the animal house our son urged us to "come and see the dalamation donkey" (see picture in the gallery!), Daisy the calf ,and Tara and Tallulah the miniature Shetlands.
The children were very excited and ran into the wooden maze. Under sevens should be supervised but our eight year old was in charge, and all we could do was follow - very quickly. Our aim was to find pictures of 7 animals and then the exit. They loved it - and we came out very warm!
The entrance to the wood was like a tunnel into a different world. The only word Jerry uttered when he went through was "wow!"
The open cast pre-Roman iron mines have been transformed throughout the ages into one of the most unusual and magical places you will ever visit. It is a place where your imagination can run riot. We were not surprised to hear that J.R.R. Tolkein visited the area and may have based Middle Earth around Puzzlewood. It is a very green place with trees and moss covered rocks tranforming the wood into something very magical and mysterious. "Stick to the path", we were told ,and stray we didn't. There was always something different around the next corner or at the top of the next steps.
The children were eager to explore and busy looking for goblins and pixies. Our daughter found fairy holes and our son found a lions den! One small boy we passed was eagerly hunting for a dragon with his parents, and the aid of a small stick. When we saw him later he was still hunting, but the stick had got bigger!
At the end of our journey we had our picnic at one of the benches provided, followed by ice creams from the shop. If you prefer tea and cakes, the setting in the garden is a perfect end to your visit.
As long as you are wearing sensible shoes Puzzlewood can be enjoyed by everyone. Children look for magical figures, adults are in awe of the amazing scenery . I'm sure a few adults probably looked for a few magical figures as well. Did I? Well that would be telling!
Karen Davis
August 2006
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