Hick’s lodge is a perfect example of the achievements of the National Forest and the partnership with Forestry England. It’s a former coal mine that has been turned into walking, cycling and horse riding trails.
The woodland is still relatively new, but each time I visit it seems to have grown up a lot taller. There’s a lovely lake, well-signposted footpaths, cycle hire, a cafe, toilets and children’s play area.
Once you leave the main car park and play area, the paths are quiet (although you do need to keep a look out for cyclists). There’s a circular route, which takes about 20 minutes to walk, or a more complex set of paths to the other side of the cafe that can take longer.
This site feels like a safe place to walk alone, but there are more isolated paths. You can easily walk to Moira Furnace from here (although by late summer some of the paths from Moira are quite overgrown!) Parking isn’t cheap, but it is an important revenue stream for Forestry England, who receive less than 20% of core funding from the government. It’s also worth saying that parking is by card or via an app so go prepared for that.