Getting the kids outdoors in the holidays
Kids will really benefit from the great outdoors in the holidays When our kids were little they were always outdoors in the holidays, partly because we had stock to feed and in the Spring – there were lambs to look after. If you don’t live on a farm you don’t usually have the luxury of the great outdoors right on your doorstep. But a country walk or a woodland wander isn't that far away.
Most of our warm welly loving families just LOVE getting outdoors in the holidays, finding places to explore and things to do. So….. if you are stuck indoors or are trying to encourage the kids outdoors in the cold school holidays, here are a few ideas we think you’ll love:
Places to explore in the holidays
We’ve been compiling a list of favourite places to wander in warm wellies – so here are the top 5 - as recommended by people who love our Warm Wellies:
- Cornwall and Devon beaches
- The Peak District
- The Highlands of Scotland
- The Lake District
- Woodland walks near home
If you fancy travelling and exploring this holiday, here are a few places to try:
Scottish Snowdrop Festival
Organised by Discover Scottish Gardens, there are over 70 events this year running NOW until 11th March. Some of the gardens have free entry – but they’ll be a great place for a crisp winter walk. Scotland’s Snowdrop-festival.
Take a trip to the Lake District
We are biased, but there is no better place to explore rivers, lakes, fells and beaches than in Cumbria and the Lake District. Our recent competition highlighted just how much Warm Welly lovers like being here. Walking and exploring is free – and there are lots of cafés to warm up with a hot chocolate. Why not take advantage of the fact the sun still rises late in the morning - see it rise at Castlerigg Stone Circle near Keswick. You'll really find Warm Wellies a bonus.
Things to do in the holidays:
Go on the wild side – visit a wildlifepark:
If you are in Cumbria, then take a trip on the wild side and visit the Lake District Wildlife Park where you will meet some really wild animals including Lemurs, Gibbons, Tapirs, Yak, Wildebeest and Zebra. We’ve just donated Warm Wellies to the keepers, so they stay warm this winter.
Visit a farm and watch lambing - live:
Who doesn’t love seeing lambs in fields? There are several farms across the UK that let you visit during the lambing season. Here in Cumbria we have an award winning farm park that has the magic of lambing too Walby Farm Park They have lots of indoor and outdoor play and you can meet the lambs until 21st February 2020.
Paint a rock for Valentine’s Day:
We KNOW our customers love the beach, so what better than to send the kids exploring for the perfect rock to paint. It could make the perfect Valentines gift – or a perfect present for Mother’s Day.
Messy Little Monsters shows you how to do a great job: Paint a rock with Messy Monsters or have a look at How to paint a rock – top questions
Build a Bug Hotel
Imagine a multi storey hotel with hidey-holes to explore. Safe places can be hard to find for wildlife in gardens , so what better than building a bug hotel which encourages your local wildlife. They’re great places for shelter – looking after anything from a hedgehog, to toads, bees and ladybirds.
Winter is quite a good time to build – there are lots of sticks on the ground, leaves and old plant stems. You can also make the most of recycled materials. Top things to make a bug hotel include old roof tiles, old logs, bark, sticks, straw, moss. Old pallets are excellent because they come with readymade gaps – so keep your eyes out or salvage from a recycling centre.
We spotted some great hotels at the Lake District Wildlife Park – here are some samples:
If you go out into a forest or walking in a wood, you could also create a natural bug hotel in the great outdoors – simply using sticks, moss and bark. Get more ideas here: RSPBBuild a Bug Hotel