Outdoors shite: favourite walks with children

[GrimmaTheNome]

Please indicate age and terrain.

I'll start with Pen-y-ghent - its not too long a trek to get to the start of the climb (if you park on the road in the right place ) and the climb is very scrambly. Child gets good sense of achievement without too much boring slog.

Age - DD was 6 when she first did it, I've seen younger. Does require the child to have enough nous and coordination not to fall off the path in places!

OK, Skye - you will have to check out the Quirang - especially good on foggy days, great spooky atmosphere

Skye - agree with Quiraing - path is slightly exposed but kids seemed to love it.
Coral beaches at Dunvegan - not a huge walk but nice place for kids to explore. V touristy though.
Get the ferry to Raasay and climb Dun Caan - DS aged 4 managed this last year. Real highlight for the holiday for me. Do on clear day and you get the most amazing view of Skye and the mainland.
Fairy Pools from near Glen Brittle. Nice walk - DS enjoyed exploring the rocks last year.

The Wrekin is fab for kids.

We walk in the New Forest - no big hills, lots of ponies and different terrian (forest, bogs, heathland) - good for snake spotting too. DS is 6 and can manage 5-6 miles if we stop for a good pub lunch. We usually do 4 or so miles in a morning.

The waterfalls walk at ingleton is very good. Good paths, bit uphill on the way out, down on the way back. Think it's about five miles?

Oh yes. It was the featured walk in the saturday Times recently but they missed out the important information.

1. take spare clothes/shoes for the DCs. If your children don't end up wet from scrambling in the stream and over to the islandy bit just before the bend before Thornton force, you're really not doing it right.
2. there is a refreshment hut going up one side, and there is nearly always an ice-cream van on the track in the middle section.

North lakes/ south Scotland/northumbria ideas anyone? We live in carlisle with dc age 4 & 2. Have backpack for 2 yo. Have a few books for walks in lake district & cumbria but they are mostly in the southern half of the county which is too far for a day out.

Googled rannerdale knots & will look it up on OS map. We like buttermere, haven't been since pregnant with ds & dd in backpack. We like to walk around it. Mummy doesn't really do hills but should train self along with the DCs

Shores of Derwentwater, hopping on and off the ferry as apt can be good. Possibly similar at Ullswater - I can't remember how far it is between jetties - how long a walk are you thinking of?

Borrowdale is lovely - we've done something similar to this - can't remember whether it'd be OK for kids quite as young as yours but its a good one.

I found that on a site which looks useful here - its got a load of Carlisle Walks including some push-chair friendly even! Don't know what they're like but looks like a good resource

xpost - ah, you should like the lake+boat type walks then. Buttermere is gorgeous - its beyond our day trip limit, we're down in Preston.

Can I recommend the cresswell walks and trails in north nottinghamshire, just south of Worksop/across form Chesterfield incorporating a tour of cresswell crag, donning hard hats and getting a guided tour into the caves - dcs need to be 5 and over, afair.

Also recommend the aa site for finding walks to go on.

Chequers is one of our favourites, kids loved the bracken dells, bouncing on them and falling through, and then the dark eerie formality of the wood leading to Chequers, and if you go too far in a smartly dressed security guard emerges from behind a tree! The dcs were beside themselves!

Ooh thanks. The 2 of carlisle city we have but the 52 woodlands walks looks excellent. Off to find laptop to print it. Thanks.

Always used to combine the Chequers walk with a visit to the horse sanctuary

In the Scottish Borders would recommend the Eildons, at the back of Melrose. You can do a straight up or down or longer circuit