Colby Woodland Gardens - A post lockdown visit

10 Jul

Today we were finally reunited with one of our favourite places; Colby Woods in Amroth. It still feels a bit odd going outside of Swansea after lockdown, but it felt great to be back in beautiful Pembrokeshire.

Colby Woodland Gardens - Amroth - Our Beautiful Adventure

Colby woods is managed by the National Trust, and it’s one of the few places that when we take our three children there, not one of them complains. It is a bizarre phenomenon, that doesn’t seem to happen in many other places, (except maybe Legoland), but they all love it, and we always have the most magical time when we go.

Post lockdown they currently have some areas closed. The walled garden isn’t open yet, and when we were there the shop was also closed, so there was free entry to the garden. The tea room was open though, so you can get some food and drinks whilst you’re there. They also have a one way system operating through the woods and the meadow at the moment, but luckily it was going in the direction we usually walk around the gardens.

If you haven’t been there before I’ve no doubt you would love it. They have gorgeous woodlands, with a little network of paths that run through them, as well as a gorgeous meadow, that is beautifully overgrown at the moment and full of butterflies. There is also a gorgeous stream running alongside the meadow, which we have found is the perfect place to sit for a picnic and relax, whilst the children paddle in the water and skim stones.

If you follow the paths through the woods you can actually walk up the stream that runs down to the meadow, there are little bridges going across it that zig zag to the top. Then if you walk along the upper most path in the woods you will find these gorgeous logs that have been sawn in half, and placed in the ground at an angle, so you can lie back on them and gaze up at the woodland canopy. Then if you walk a little further along the path, you will find lots of tree stumps all arranged in a cluster, perfect for the kids to jump from one to the next.

There isn’t a park at Colby woods, but the woods themselves offer a very natural playground. There are rope swings in the woods by the car park, and there are fallen down trees that lay across the stream, forming perfect bridges to get from one side to the next. They’re nice and big trees, and easy enough to walk across, but there is something magical for the kids in balancing on a log across a stream. It’s such an adventure for them!

Once you have explored all that the woods have to offer, you can follow the path through the trees down to the seaside town of Amroth. (Keep your eyes peeled for the tree full of money!) It is such a cute little place, with lovely colourful houses, and a stunning beach. You get views all the way back to the Gower from there too. On this visit we had our picnic on the beach, followed by some ice cream for the walk back afterwards. It seemed like most of the shops and cafes had reopened there too, so lots of options for food and treats on your visit.

On this visit the kids had so much fun running through the woods and meadow, playing in the stream, and spotting all of the amazing wildlife too. We even found lots of sycamore seeds, and the kids were fascinated throwing them in the air and watching them spin to the ground. There is something about the days spent here, when I can watch the kids playing and interacting with nature so happily, with no technology in sight, that feels so magical, and I’m sure it’s why it’s one of my favourite family days out.

We had such a great visit to Colby Woods, and things weren’t too different at all post-lockdown. We were still able to go to all our favourite parts of the woods, and there were so few people around it was easy to keep our distance. I would definitely recommend a visit there when you get the chance!