Forest bathing at Weald Country Park

Weald Country Park is more than 520 acres of parkland, woodland, lakes, hay meadows and grassland near Brentwood. It began as a medieval deer park in the 12th century and later held a Tudor mansion and landscaped grounds. The hall was pulled down in 1951 and Essex County Council bought the park two years later. The old landscape is still there in the mix of open grass, scattered trees and woodland, and a herd of fallow deer lives in an enclosure.

The visitor centre, with its café and toilets, is the easiest place to start, and the paths around the lake from there are surfaced and suitable for wheelchairs and buggies. The Stick Man trail is about 1.4 km on surfaced paths and popular with young families. For a quieter couple of hours, leave the lake and the deer enclosure behind and head into the woodland and meadows. There are toilets at each of the four car parks.