Forest bathing at Moseley Bog and Joy’s Wood

Moseley Bog and Joy's Wood is an 11-hectare nature reserve in the south Birmingham suburbs, cared for by the Birmingham and Black Country Wildlife Trust. It is a mix of wet woodland, fen and meadow with gnarled old trees, and it was saved from development by a local campaign. J.R.R. Tolkien played here as a boy and said it inspired the old forest in his books. There is history underfoot too: two ancient burnt mounds, an old mill dam and the foundations of Victorian greenhouses.

It is small, but it is dense and green enough that the city drops away quickly. The main entrance is off Yardley Wood Road, with others from Pensby Close and from the field opposite the Windermere Road car park. Many routes suit buggies and wheelchairs. Spring brings bluebells; after rain the wetter parts are soft and muddy. The reserve is open at all times, all year.