Does your little one love The Gruffalo? Then one of the best ways to get them to enjoy a walk is to try one of the many Gruffalo trails across the UK. Below you will find details of the best Gruffalo trails in the UK. Family walks are fantastic (low cost or free) family days out.
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Delamere Forest, Cheshire
Delamere forest has always been one of our favourite places to see a large Gruffalo sculpture. It was removed at the end of summer 2021 due to too much damage. They have commissioned a new one but so far no date of installation has been shared. It’s still a lovely place to walk with kids and they do have all the other character instead.
Find out more about Delamere forest walks here.
Orrest head, Windermere
Orrest head is one of my favourite Child-friendly walks in the lake district. It’s not a pram-friendly walk as it is all uphill. It’s only 2 miles so it is suitable for little legs and the Gruffalo sculpture is halfway up (and down).
The views from the top, over Windermere, are simply stunning. It is a popular walk so be prepared for that. There are no facilities on the trail. The walk starts close to the Windermere hotel and there are sign posts to follow all the way to the top.
Mallards Pike, Forest of Dean
Mallards Pike, Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire is a Forestry Commission owned site and is home to the Gruffalo Orienteering Course. The Gruffalo Orienteering Course is a maximum of 2km however you can just do half of the course if you don’t fancy the whole thing. This one is recommended by Nikki from Unicorns, Dinosaurs & Me.
The first part of the course is pushchair and wheelchair accessible and takes you around the lake, once you get to point 5 you can either carry on along the path to point 12 and the finish or you can head off the path (not pushchair/wheelchair accessible) and find points 6-11.
The points are located just within the woodland and are easy for toddlers to find, each one encourages you to look at the forest around you and discover nature. Both my 4-year-old and my 9-year-old enjoy the course and you can even take the dog!
Once you’ve finished the trail there is a lovely café serving hot and cold drinks, ice creams (including doggy ice cream), light lunches and locally baked cakes and pastries.
Find more dog-friendly places in Forest of Dean here.
This might not be dog-friendly but Puzzlewood in the Forest of Dean is another great family walk – Puzzlewood, Forest of Dean review
Moors Valley, Dorset
If you’re visiting Moors Valley Country Park in Dorset, the Gruffalo trail has to be one of your top things to do. Moors Valley is one of the only places in the country with a life-size Gruffalo and gruffalo’s Child structure waiting to be found. Moors Valley is suggested by Exploring Dorset.
The large structures are perfectly placed within one of the many picnic areas at the country park. Begin your adventure with a picnic and some great photo opportunities.
The ground is mainly level and suitable for pushchairs and wheelchairs if you’re Gruffalo spotting at Moors Valley. You could even break up the trail with some adventure on the play trail (although some of these paths are not so accessible).
Find out more about Moors Valley here.
Thorndon Country Park Gruffalo Trail, Essex
The Thorndon Country Park Gruffalo Trail in Brentwood takes you through the woods to find wooden carvings of the mouse (with his nut), the owl up in his tree, the fox and the snake with his log pile house. At the end of the trail, you will find the Gruffalo’s child and the Gruffalo himself.
During opening hours you can buy a map from the Visitors Centre run by Essex Wildlife Trust. The path for the trail is suitable for pushchairs, but if you go off the main path it might get muddy. There are toilets on site and parking starts at £2.30 for 1 hour (ticket machine is card only), head to the Thornton North Car Park for the easiest access.
The Gruffalo Trail at Mountain View Ranch, Cardiff
The Gruffalo Trail at Mountain View Ranch is the first and so far, only official Gruffalo Trail in Wales. Come join Julia Donaldson’s loveable character, Mouse, and walk around the woods finding Fox, Owl, Snake and of course a Gruffalo! There’s so much more to do there too, including nature walks, a fairy forest, archery, farm animals and adventure play areas.
Mountain View Ranch (Sat Nav Postcode: CF83 1NG) is located just off the M4 J32, about 20 minute drive from Cardiff.
Opening times: Open most Fridays, Weekends and every day during the School Holidays, 9am – 5pm
Time slots must be pre-booked. Book here
Time slots are for 3 hours, but you’re welcome to stay longer as long as you leave the park by 5pm (if you want a longer day out, book an earlier slot).
Tickets: Adults: £6, Children (age 2-16): £6, Carers/Disabled: £5
Food & Drink: Bring a picnic to enjoy or feast on delicious stone-baked pizzas from the Pizza & Bean Café.
Cannock chase
Cannock chase is another Forestry commission woodland with a Gruffalo sculpture. This forest is near to Birmingham and has loads for families to do including finding the gruffalo sculpture, go ape and orienteering trails.
The Gruffalo sculpture has recently been joined by sculptures of all his friends. Find them on the Ladyhill trail.
High lodge, Norfolk
You can also find a Gruffalo sculpture at High Lodge on Norfolk. This is a forestry England site that also has a disc golf course and adventure golf for you to enjoy.
Whinlatter forest, the Lake District
Whinlatter Forest is a fantastic family day out. The Gruffalo Trail at Whilatter forest leads you through a big part of the forest, with so many sculptures of all the Gruffalo characters along the way plus questions to answer and things to spot. The trail is a mile in length and is on paths that are pushchair and wheelchair accessible although it is quite hilly in places. It feels like fantastic exercise by the time you reach the finish.
The Gruffalo marks the end of the trail which is well situated right next to the adventure playground and water play area. This feels like such a great reward for children after their Gruffalo adventure! Although the Gruffalo Trail is free, you can buy a Gruffalo Orienteering Challenge for £1.50 from the visitor centre that shows all the sculptures on a map and a certificate for completing the challenge. Find out more here.
Alice holt, Surrey
Alice Holt Forest is a really popular day out locally and one reason for that is the Gruffalo Trail. With signposts to follow and Gruffalo characters to find, it takes you on a fantastic walk through the forest with play areas dotted along the way too.
Unlike other forests we’ve been to, Alice Holt has so many play areas to keep the children entertained and having the Gruffalo Trail and play areas dotted along the same route makes for a really fun and engaging day out, especially for young children.
Alice Holt often has other trails to follow too but the Gruffalo is the longest-running – and we always make sure we visit the Gruffalo sculpture at the end of the trail each time we visit. The route is pushchair and wheelchair-friendly and ends right near the visitor centre, cafe and main play area.
Sherwood Pines, Nottingham
Visit the gorgeous Sherwood Pines and enjoy a fun Gruffalo navigational challenge to discover twelve Gruffalo markers that are hiding in the deep, dark wood. This trail is recommended by A Mum Reviews.
To get started, you pick up the Gruffalo Spotters orienteering kit from the Visitor Centre for a small fee. You can also do the trail without this which makes it a free activity. It’s not a very long trail so it’s ideal for younger children.
Sherwood Pines is a wonderful place to visit that offers lots of other activities for families. It’s ideal for biking and hiking, picnics with friends and family and there are several playgrounds to enjoy suitable for children of different ages too.
There’s an adventure playground which is brilliant, and you can also enjoy Go Ape activities if you fancy a view from the treetops. Plus, there’s a trenches installation to explore. You can easily spend a full day doing different activities when visiting Sherwood Pines.
If you know any more Gruffalo trails please do leave a comment. I’d love to keep updating this post so it covers all the main Gruffalo trails in the UK.
This year’s Forestry England Julia Donaldson trail is Zog. Find full of all 26 trails here – Zog trails.
Where to next?
- Find ideas for Gruffalo activities for toddlers here. These are the perfect things to do before, after and even during your walk.
- Trails like this are great for family walks but if you want to go somewhere with less things to interest kids, you need some ideas for keeping the kids happy. Perhaps you’ll choose one of my Nature walk scavenger hunt free printables.
- Or find loads of things to do on a walk with kids here.
- Do you want some indoor Gruffalo-themed fun? Check out this guide to The Gruffalo & Friends Clubhouse, Blackpool