Bewilderwood...

Image made available under Creative Commons by Flickr user .Martin.

Been writing this post for yonks...

This time of year is the time of the annual enquiry question: "what are we going to do today ?", which is also accompanied by "is there anything to eat ?"

Bewilderwood has been on the cards for a visit for some time now, almost since it opened. One of the reasons for waiting was to see how it developed, and also to get more feedback from people who had visited.

For those who don't know what Bewilderwood is: it's an attraction for young people based in a 50 acre woodland near Wroxham, in Norfolk. There is a related story about the inhabitants of the woodland which include the creatures known as Boggles.

The visit starts with a boat ride through the Dismal Dyke (or you could take the Treacherous Trail instead...), and leads to an area with plenty of activities and treehouses to explore. A search on sites such as FLICKR will give you a flavour of the activities, which include a variety of slides, climbing ropes, mazes, elevated walkways and rope bridges. The buildings are really attractive, and cling to the trees.

One of the particular aspects of Bewilderwood is its environmental / woody aesthetic.

As with many other venues and organisations, Bewilderwood has made an effort on its environmental credentials.

Some things that are done include:

• Food sold on site is sourced locally, wherever possible
• Our BeWILDerboats are reclaimed lifeboats, converted to electric
• Fences within the site have been made from wood harvested in our own woods

How could some of these ideas be adapted for the case studies that you teach in your school ?

Would make Bewilderwood a good context for teaching about the environmentalal sustainability angle of tourist activity.

I never did get there this summer in the end...
Will wait for a nice sunny weekend day in the autumn...