Savernake Forest, just south of Marlborough, covers approximately 2750 acres, most of which is classified as a Site of Special
Scientific Interest. Its history goes back over a thousand years and as a result it has a collection of notable trees. Its tranquillity and unspoiled nature are its main draw and as a result there are few facilities, other than a parking area and a few picnic tables.
We visited to do a geocaching circuit and, as a result, used that as a route. We had Barney with us and he had a great time exploring off lead. As it's such a large area we encountered relatively few other people.
Although we went primarily to do geocaching we had a great walk and will definitely be back with Barney in the future to explore it further.
Barney loved the beach when we were on holiday in Dorset so I'd been keen to take him back for some time. Unfortunately living in Wiltshire, any beach is a good car journey away. I'd done some research and found a few about an hour away, but one that kept coming up was Sand Bay.
Sand Bay is a long, wide, flat strip of sand and shingle, a couple of miles north of Weston-Super-Mare. Dogs are permitted all year around so it's a perfect spot for a dog walk. The only down-side is the mud flats which you need to be aware of, but they're clearly signposted.
Facilities are few and far between, but there are car parks and a tea room. If you want more choice, Weston isn't far away. Part of the appeal is that it isn't as touristy as its close neighbour, so the lack of facilities is a compromise worth making.
Barney had a great time, there were plenty of other dogs for him to meet and he got to run, and run, and run. There was one incident where he stole another dog's tennis ball but then karma kicked in and he had his stolen in return. He's not a fan of the sea, so we went when the tide was out to give him the largest expanse to explore.
We had such a great time there, we'll definitely be back.
