Sussex Walks: Forest Bathing in Friston Forest.

There is something about being among trees that is magical. The air feels heavy with healing energy and you suddenly feel like whispering, to respect the ancient nature around you. When the woodland is thick, there is a feast for the eyes.

I’ve visited Friston Forest a few times, mainly to pitch up in the car park and work for a few hours but also to meet a friend for a walk. But I had never consciously gone into the forest, it had felt like I had only done short walks that skirted the edges. Eager to remedy that I found a route on Alltrails that in a snap decision on a Monday morning I navigated to.

Parking in the Exceat car park opposite the epic Seven Sisters Country Park I slung the camera over my shoulder and followed a perky Monty into the trees. There had been storms in other places of the UK and the evidence was the whipping up of dead leaves by the chilly wind. I started navigating the route and while we started a little off piste it all came good.

At first the walk was like any woodland walk, picking between the tree routes on a fairly solid and well marked path. There are ramps too so on a. dry day might be suitable for some wheelchair users. We walked along and I enjoyed the winter light dipping through the trees with the sun coming on and off my face.

Monty picked up the scent of a deer or fox and with his nose to the ground, made himself busy up and down the hill around the base off the trees. But it wasn't until the route started splitting out to a square into the thicker bit of Friston Forest that the magic came.

Finding myself on a wide clearing, lined with rows of trees cyclists whizzed past and I nodded at other dog walkers. The route took a left turn and this is where is got juicy - vistas of paths snaking through forest, a gent relaxing in the sunshine, jays (I counted at least 4) playing between two trees. The route took my up on. to a quiet path where I looped back round to pick up the path I should have taken at the beginning and passed by the West Dean pond before arriving back at the car park where I heated some soup and sat at the side of the van reflecting on how at peace I felt.