Celebrate Winnie the Pooh Day with a visit to his home
© Copyright Matt Brown
January 18th marks the annual ‘Winnie the Pooh Day’, which is celebrated on the birthday of the author A.A. Milne. The special day is a chance for Pooh Bear fans of all ages to celebrate their love for one of Britain’s best loved story characters. If you enjoy Pooh’s adventures with Piglet, Eeyore and co., did you know that you can visit where the ideas and stories came from?
The 100 Acre Wood where the characters had their fun in the stories is actually based on the 500 Acre Wood in Ashdown Forest, East Sussex.
A.A. Milne was apparently a keen walker and alongside his son Christopher Robin (who the stories were based on) would venture into the woodland in Ashdown Forest which would inspire the many fantastic tales and journeys that the book characters took on.
If you want to follow in the footsteps of the story, you can visit ‘Pooh Corner‘ in Hartfield, where you can find maps and tick sheets for all the places you can visit locally that feature in the books. You can even pay a visit to the original bridge to play ‘Pooh sticks’.
The 500 Acre Wood is a dense beech wood just north of Ashdown Forest. A visit to Gills Lap (named Galleons Lap in the stories) features a display panel which illustrates some famous Pooh locations in the area.
View from Gills Lap © Copyright Nick Smith
The 500 Acre Wood is actually privately owned (Ohhhh bother!), but a couple of public footpaths will take you through in certain areas.
If you’re looking to explore the area, why not try these two Pooh Walks from the Gills Lap area, parking is available.
Excerpt from Ashdown Forest Pooh Walks from Gills Lap Map
With walks the distance of 0.6miles (1km) or 2 miles (3.25km) these family walks are ideal for Pooh fans of all ages. For those looking for a slightly longer walk, why not try this 7 mile walk from the AA.
If you love a story, or a bit of history with your walks, or you’re looking for an excuse to get the kids out and their imaginations running wild, then you can’t go far wrong with a literary legend like Winnie the Pooh.
Happy Winnie the Pooh Day!
