Robin Hood, Robin Hood......

​Certain parts of the country are so linked with legends they draw tourists from all over the world. Strangely the ones you live nearest too are the ones you tend to forget about. We live within 60 miles of Sherwood Forest – not a great distance but one we have never undertaken. Time to remedy this with a family weekend in the Forestry commission holiday lodges.
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Robin Hood and Maid Marian are figures of history everyone will have heard of but whether they actually existed – who knows? Still, visiting the church where they allegedly married, having your photograph taken with their statues and visiting the majestic Major Oak, rumoured to be their sleeping place, it is hard to have any doubts about their existence. The village of Edinstowe is a pretty very ‘English’ place with tea rooms and souvenir shops and of course St Mary’s Church which is rumoured to be the wedding venue for Robin Hood and Maid Marian. The Church from the outside is very photogenic but sadly wasn’t open. Without the loose link to the Robin Hood story I doubt it would attract any special attention.

The Major Oak, on the other hand, cannot be described as anything other than majestic. Approximately 10 metres wide and 28 metres of ‘branches’ it is supported by metal poles and other structures and kept safely behind a fence to ensure it survives intact for another 1000 years. Voted ‘England’s tree of the year in 2014 – would you know any other tree to vote for?! – it is well worth a visit and an attempt at fitting the whole tree on any shot you can successfully take. Selfies of the family with the tree behind were a particular challenge! The whole of the Sherwood Forest Country Park was a lovely place to visit – thankfully the weather was good and the park was full of families walking, eating ice creams and spending time together. Over by the visitor centre and shop they were even setting up for a wedding later that day.

​We spent the whole weekend in and around Sherwood Forest only venturing out once to visit Newark Air Museum. A lovely place and we even bought a Robin Hood teddy back for Nanna!