Castlerigg Stone Circle
Thirty-eight standing stones in a field above Keswick with the fells all round. Free, open any time in daylight, and exactly the right size for children to count, run between and not get bored.
Parks & outdoors Keswick
Parks & outdoors in Keswick
Playgrounds, country parks, woodland trails and nature reserves. Most of these cost nothing.
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Keswick's free outdoors is mostly about the setting. Castlerigg Stone Circle is thirty-eight standing stones in a field above the town with the fells all round, open any time in daylight and exactly the right size for children to count, run between and not get bored. Hope Park sits between the town and the lake, with gardens, a bird hide, remote-control boats on a model Derwentwater, pitch and putt, crazy golf at £6.50 each and Cafe Hope. It is free to wander, but there are no swings.
Whinlatter Forest, England's only true mountain forest, is the one to give a whole morning to. Entry is free and parking is paid. The Room on the Broom trail, Gruffalo orienteering and the WildPlay trail keep younger ones moving, Go Ape is there for older children, and there are red squirrels if you are lucky and views over Derwentwater either way. Castlerigg costs nothing and needs no planning, so keep it for the drive home.
Parks & outdoors in Keswick
Hope Park
Keswick's park between the town and the lake: gardens, a bird hide, remote-control boats on a model Derwentwater, crazy golf, pitch and putt and Cafe Hope. Free to walk through, the games cost extra, and there are no swings.
Whinlatter Forest
England's only true mountain forest: the Room on the Broom trail, Gruffalo orienteering, the WildPlay trail, red squirrels if you are lucky, and Go Ape for older kids. Views over Derwentwater thrown in.
Parks & outdoors elsewhere in the North West
Walton Hall & Gardens
The reliable default: gardens, a children's zoo, a big playground and plenty of room to run. Pay for parking, nothing else.
Risley Moss
A raised peat bog nature reserve at Birchwood with woodland trails, bird hides and a visitor centre with toilets. Free, close and short enough for little legs, but closed on Fridays.
Sherdley Park
St Helens' biggest park. Play areas, open space and a walled garden, and it costs nothing.
Dream, Sutton Manor
A 20-metre white head rising out of a reclaimed colliery, with woodland trails around it. Genuinely strange and memorable for kids, and a short walk rather than a hike.
Sankey Valley Park
A green corridor of canal towpath and parkland running from St Helens down towards Warrington. Flat, traffic-free and ideal if the bikes or scooters are coming.
Speke Hall
A Tudor hall with woodland walks, a maze and a natural play area in the grounds. Free if you have National Trust membership, and the indoor house is a good rain fallback.
What’s on near you, every Friday
One email a week: what is on this weekend within a sensible drive, and the places worth booking before they go.