Where to practice bushcraft in England

When it comes to practising your bushcraft skills the one thing that no one on the internet will be able to give you is permission to do certain things there. Where you choose is up to you, but if you want to be carrying a knife and using a hatchet legally then you’ll need permission to do so from whoever owns the land you want to go on.

If you’re looking to do some foraging then the national foraging laws apply which means you can gather pretty much anything you want to as long as it’s a wild plant and you’re not uprooting or damaging it beyond repair. There are so many options when it comes to where to practice bushcraft in England, with almost every large woodland being a good place, but if you want something truly special then check out some of the places on the list below.

Cumbria – Grizedale forest, Rydal and Grasmere

Grizedale forest is home to the last indigenous red deer herd in England and spreads out over a large portion of the lake district. The lake at Grasmere is surrounded by woodland and the whole area offers the best combination of terrain to practice a wide range of skills. Since the area is spread out over such a large area it is owned by multiple people and organizations, so do your research into the area you want to go to.

Northumberland – Kielder Forest

Kielder Forest is the biggest man-made forest in England and covers over 250 square miles. It also hosts the UK’s biggest man-made lake and has a 27-mile-long hiking route called the Lakeside Way. Even though it isn’t a natural forest it’s still home to a huge range of wild foods and animals and makes it one of the best places to practice your navigation and distance hiking skills.

There are numerous campsites in the area but if you want to camp within the trees then you’ll need permission to do so. Even without camping permission, this is an amazing place for a walk around and good practice to see how far you can make it through a forest in a single day.

Gloucester – Forest of Dean

An ancient woodland covering over 500 square kilometers, the Forest of Dean is also home to a pack of wild boar that was illegally introduced there by animal rights activists several years ago and have since bred. The forest is mixed and has one of the best varieties of trees in England making it a great choice to practise identifying wild foods. The area was used for coal mining in the 1800s and there are still many ruins scattered throughout the trees.

Since the forest is so mixed with its tree types, this has led to a large range of mushrooms growing there and offers more types than in any other English woodland. Many campsites around the area offer reasonable prices but as with wild camping anywhere in England, you’ll need permission.

Hampshire – New Forest

The interesting thing about this location is that it isn’t really a “forest” as such and would fit the name of “New Moorland” better. Thick patches of heather spread out across rolling terrain that’s broken up by groups of trees and grazing animals.

Moorland is one type of terrain you should always practice your skills on at least once, as it doesn’t offer huge amounts of building materials and a range of wild foods as woodland does. Moorland is one of the hardest terrain types to stay alive on in a survival situation as it leaves people more exposed and with less food and materials than almost anywhere else, making it an excellent place to hone your survival skills safely.

Devon – Teign Gorge

This deep forested gorge has the river Teign running through it which starts off on moorland and flows into the deep valley known as Teign Gorge. Steep forested valley sides make this a good place to practice getting across difficult terrain and navigating through twisting forested slopes.

The area has a good range of wild foods starting with bilberries on the moorland and moving onto some interesting plant life alongside the river. Moving around the slopes of the valley itself can be quite dangerous as some are very steep, but this makes it good practice for anyone looking to get experience with this type of terrain.

Cannock – Cannock Chase

Most of the forest here is pine and has been purposefully planted, but it still covers a huge area and hosts many camping sites within it. Many streams are running through the trees and the whole area is quite hilly which makes it easy to get lost since most of the trees are the same type.

There are many fallen pine trees in the forest and since it’s such a good building material, this makes it a good starter location to do some shelter building. There are many roads running through the trees and the town of Cannock is located right on the edge of the woodland, so if you do get lost you won’t have to walk more than a few hundred feet until you find a path to safety. Due to the density of paths running through it and how many buildings are randomly dotted around, Cannock Chase is one of the safest areas for beginners as getting lost can be fixed in minutes and the ground is quite bare and easy to move through.

Norfolk and Suffolk – Thetford Forest

Covering over 47,000 acres, Thetford forest is the largest lowland pine forest in England. This is a bigger version of Cannock Chase and also has many paths and roads running through it. Mostly consisting of pine trees, this forest is home to a large population of wild deer, most belonging to the muntjac breed, an invasive species its legal to hunt all year round. It’s also home to one of the biggest varieties of wild birds in England and makes a great spot to do some animal spotting and tracking.