On the Trail of Robin Hood

A walk in the local Sherwood Forest this week set me pondering the age-old story of the Nottingham outlaw and the legends surrounding his associated characters and places. I’ve touched on the story previously in articles featuring St. James Church at Papplewick and Sherwood Forest itself but I hopefully have a different slant to offer within this piece.

Sherwood Forest was enjoying a day’s respite from the regular reign of late on Monday, the high clouds finally clearing to offer fresh sunlight dappled through the old oaks, the rays searing into the clearings amongst the trees. Many visitors only appear to consider the Major Oak as worth seeing and truly it is a tremendous sight, but within a few minutes one can be in seclusion within the boundaries of the 450-acre former Royal hunting park.

Being a busy visitor centre much visited by tourists necessarily affects the amount of wildlife in the Forest but there are still compensations along the many pleasant paths through trees. Out in the Forest today were dozens of different fungi carpeting the ground and felled trees. A close up study of the ancient oaks is also quite a wonder. As I walked the gunshot fire of squirrels dropping acorns from the tall boughs onto the otherwise silent woodland floors. It was against this backdrop that I considered this story of the world-renowned outlaw of Sherwood Forest.

North Nottinghamshire still remains an area of more than average forestry. Some of it no longer deciduous but still attractive in its own way. This is especially so when requiring a part canopy against the elements on a wet day’s walking. It was on just such a day recently that I found myself walking with a friend in the local Thieves Wood and Harlow Wood. It’s in the latter that the site of a legendary Robin Hood story can be found.

Wet days can sometimes bring their compensations ironically and so it was today for a series of inclement days had seen the formerly dried up waters of Fountaindale gurgling and flowing busily. The ballad of Robin and the Curtail Flyer documents the first meeting of Robin Hood and Friar Tuck at Fountaindale. It’s a story that has been enacted many times for Hollywood and television. One legend has it that Robin had a resting place near the dale whilst the Friar may have either been from Nearby Newstead Abbey or possibly a smaller Abbey at Fountaindale. Robin had the reputation as the best bowman in England and had heard that the Friar was his match and more. When searching for and finding Friar Tuck at Fountaindale, Robin Hood demanded that the Friar carry him across the water. Tuck duly and obediently acceded to Robin’s demand only to drop him in half way across. Stories record that within humiliated, a fierce fight ensued before the two became friends after gaining mutual respect with Tuck joining Robin Hood’s band of men.

Another interesting side story from the area describes Sir Walter Scott writing parts of his famous ‘Ivanhoe’ epic at nearby Fountain Dale House. Scott referred to the area as ‘Copmanhurst’.

An excellent video account of one man’s visit to Will Scarlet’s grave

At nearby Blidworth lies what is reputed to be the grave of another of that band, Will Scarlet. The Church of St Mary of the Purification on the main street houses a curious monument to the rear which was not originally a gravestone but rather the original apex from the tower of the church. There are no markings on the stone but generations of local people have passed down the legend that Will Scarlet was buried against the back of the church. Who really knows? As with all stories related within the legendary story of Robin Hood and his Merry Men one has to use one’s imagination. Certainly though if there is any accuracy in the stories, the area of Nottinghamshire containing Sherwood Forest, Fountaindale and Blidworth would present a worthy epicentre of its activities.

Bottoms up! The Fox and Hounds, Blidworth Bottoms, Notts

A few miles north of the city of Nottingham deep in Robin Hood Country lies the village of Blidworth, a former mining area and celebrated as reputedly owning the burial place of one Will Scarlett. Debate will no doubt always surround the legendary outlaw but what isn’t in doubt is the enviable geographical position of the slightly comically named Blidworth Bottoms nearby which houses the attractive Fox and Hounds pub.

As one might imagine, Blidworth Bottoms nestles at the foot of a steep hill from Blidworth up above. A farm or two, a few private homes and the public house comprise much of what this little niche of Nottinghamshire has to offer – and that is just the very appeal of it.

Just south of the Fox and Hounds lies Blidworth Woods, a beautiful, undulating woodland with waymarked trails for those keen on taking the air in pleasant surroundings. Over the past few years more than a whiff of scandal has been attached to Blidworth Woods due to it being a notorious meeting place for those of a, shall we say more adventurous sexual appetite. An increased police presence has partly altered this state of affairs, locals state. I don’t particularly want to dwell on this issue too much apart from to say that running and walking in those woods is something I have done for many a year and that I hope others are afforded the opportunity to do that unhindered and without embarrassment too.

The Fox and Hounds is a white-painted former farm house that sits very cosily at the foot of a hill and directly opposite a junction of a partly single-track tree-shrouded country lane. It is a charming drive through the woods from the direction of the old Victorian Papplewick Pumping Station. Although being situated a few miles north of the large Nottinghamshire suburb of Arnold, it still remains only ten minutes drive away. The origins of the building go back as far as the early Nineteenth century though the exact date it became a public house is unknown. The interior of the pub has some interesting paintings and photographs around the walls which date it back as a pub to at least 1910.

Perhaps the first thing that one notes when entering the Fox and Hounds is the compact cosiness of the pub. It retains the warmth and welcome of a nice old country drinking place and immediately feels welcoming. That feeling is certainly exacerbated by the pleasant and very friendly staff who offer a genuinely warm welcome and polite and attentive service. Likewise the whole pub has a friendly ambiance due to a nice mixture of friendly locals and visitors from further afield alike. The interior has a wrap-around lounge and eating area to the right-hand side of the pub and small public bar to the left. In comparatively recent times an outside deck has been built on the left-hand side which offers a pleasant view over the rolling fields

I first visited the Fox and Hounds some thirty years ago. I liked it then though the pub – like many others was quite different in appearance in those days with smaller rooms and the accent being on drinking rather eating as was the order of the day. It was a perennial favourite of mums and dads with it’s swingpark outside – the archetypal place where kids could be brought, given a bottle of lemonade and packet of crisps and left to play whilst mum and dad got on with the job of relaxing for an hour or two on a warm, balmy Sunday evening.

Times and tastes change of course but happily the Fox and Hounds has moved forward with a respect to the old pub as it was and is very much unspoilt. it is still a treat to visit there. In these pieces about pubs I tend to steer away from reviewing drinks, menus and meals as there are many sites that deal with those things primarily. I will offer an important point though as it’s usually to eat when I visit, that the food is home cooked on the premises – a claim that cannot be made by too many pubs these days. I never fail to enjoy my meals there which are offered up in very ample servings. To be recommended. At the same this is not a pub that discourages drinkers to the inclusion of diners. One feels perfectly at ease just taking a pint or two in there.

So there we go then, the Fox and Hounds at Blidworth Bottoms. It can be approached from either the main A60 or A614 roads or pleasantly through the woods from the direction of Ravenshead. I’ll leave you to check your road maps. I think you will be glad you did.

North Yorkshire: Robin Hood’s Bay and The Cleveland Way

Robin Hood’s Bay

Robin Hood’s Bay (or ‘The Bay’ as the locals call it) really is a little gem of a place. Though it attracts many visitors and gets very busy don’t let this deter you. The first thing to note is that you can’t drive down to the village – well you can but there’s nowhere to park so you’re left performing an awkward about-turn and returning to the car parks at the head of the village. In any case the walk down is one to be savoured, with its nooks and crannies and haphazardly built small cottages sitting on yards and narrow walkways to explore.

The village survives part of it being swept into the North Sea in the past and a sea defence wall was finally built in the 1970’s.The hugely steep hill down into the village takes one directly to the beach where a very welcoming pub named The Bay Hotel sits. From here views can be had over the North Sea whilst taking a pint or bite to eat. Very popular is the small yard outside too. The last time I was there a travelling family of folkies who were performing at the Whitby Folk Festival were giving an impromptu performance in the yard whilst their children danced to the music. It was a beautiful sunny afternoon and truly one of those moments you wish could last forever.

Land of Legend and Dreams, Sherwood Forest and The Major Oak

Like most places a prospective visit to Nottinghamshire will necessarily draw up a mental menu of important and unusual places to see. For this city and its environs, such targets might include, the Nottingham Castle, The Caves of Nottingham, Newstead Abbey and that ancient watering hole, Ye Olde Trip To Jerusalem. Nowhere locally though perhaps has such world-wide notoriety as Sherwood Forest and in particular the Major Oak – as fable has it, the famous hideaway and meeting place of the legendary Robin Hood and his Merry Men.

I’ve made not one but three visits to the old tree recently, each time with visitors to Nottingham, and enjoyed them just as much as I ever did years ago. One of the benefits of acting as an unofficial tour guide for visitors is that it lends an opportunity to view familiar places and scenery through their eyes and to freshen up your own perceptions of them.

My understanding is that a large amount of money is to be spent in refurbishing or rebuilding the visitor centre at the forest so perhaps now is the time to remember it how it always was for most of my life.

The drive from the city of Nottingham lasts but twenty miles or so and is a simple one straight north for most of the journey. Allow just forty minutes steady drive through the pleasantly wooded countryside of north Nottinghamshire’s Dukeries. A final traffic roundabout on the main A614 suggests the way to Sherwood Forest as the second turn but my preference is for the first turn which takes us through the village of Edwinstowe, famed as the home of St. Mary’s Church where Robin Hood and Maid Marion were said to be betrothed. A keen eye should be kept however for the first photo opportunity of the day which lies at the crossroads as we turn right – Maid Marion’s Secrets. No, not a historical site, but rather a ‘naughty knickers’ shop, borrowing on the famous damsel’s name! The mind boggles at Marion in some of that lingerie…

We then pass the local cricket pitch and a ‘travelling’ funfair that in my estimation appears to have been there solidly for the past thirty years and left into the free weekday entrance of the visitor centre. Let’s be honest about the visitor centre, it remains the height of kitsch. I have no idea when it was constructed but it reminds me heavily of a seventies conception of what tourists would wish to be greeted by. As one enters there is a large fibre glass caricature of Little John, staff fighting with Robin himself in their famed initial encounter on the bridge. Gathered around in a small clearing are a huddle of buildings with cheap-looking facades, an unexceptional café, a craft shop, a small video theatre, souvenir shop and display area along with public facilities which on my visits have always been unsatisfactory. I’d like to be fair here and point to the previous mention of a refurbishment or rebuild that is scheduled for Sherwood Forest visitor centre however. The area with its attendant 500,000 visitors each year truly deserves better and at long last it seems as though this will happen.

The area of the remaining Sherwood Forest now numbers just 450 acres. At around 6-700 acres, (BestwoodCountryPark a few miles north of Nottingham is ironically an arguably better and certainly a larger area of what remains of the forest). Surfaced and signposted woodland paths lead one through the attractive native woodland of mainly oak and birch. The trees are expertly managed to preserve Sherwood as much as possible alike its original aspect. For those that enjoy walking it’s possible with the aid of a map to take a long walk around and within the perimeter of the woodland and get away from the many visitors and busy chatter amongst the trees. For most however the walk will conform to a pattern of a short twenty-minute circular walk to see the Major Oak. The walk to the tree is impressive enough for those that appreciate nature. Many of the oaks in particular are huge trees, some burnt by lightning but still stoutly standing. The oak is a mighty tree.

The tree itself is still slightly awe-inspiring in its pure size. As one turns the corner to see it come into view, the sight is an extremely arresting one. My understanding is that the oak’s circumference measures some ten metres but perhaps initially most notable is the sheer amount of work that has gone towards keeping the tree upright after 1000 years of existence. The metal props, chains, ropes and fibre glass moulding do not detract from its majesty. A narrow gap in the trunk allows passage inside the tree and makes it easy to understand why it was famed as a hiding place for Robin Hood, even if history indicates that the age of the tree would not have made this possible. Surrounding the tree is a fence placed in order to keep tourists away from the area underneath the oak. This was deemed necessary as the good-natured trampling of tourist’s hooves was compacting the soil and inhibiting the Major Oak from taking in water through its roots.

There is a good amount of information to read at the tree and that perhaps is best left for a personal visit. However a theory towards why the tree is of such a huge size is offered in that it may have actually been two trees that grew together. Another theory given is that a lightning bolt hit the tree and split it into two halves which both flourished afterwards.

For me the best time to see Sherwood Forest is alone, early on a crisp winter’s morning, particularly with a dusting of newly fallen snow or a haw frost. This will not be available to the casual visitor however but still it is worth considering a weekday visit to get away from the large crowd and attendant ice cream vans of a sunny Sunday afternoon. One takes one choice on these matters and I guess I take my forests and nature quite seriously!

One more little piece of legend that always entrances me is that of the famous ‘Green Men’. This legend is often seen in carvings on churches but actually pre-dates Christianity. Usually the green man is depicted as face made of leaves and with leaves sprouting from his mouth. This is meant to denote the wisdom of the earth from which they draw, being nourished and passed on to us all. It also depicts renaissance and the seasons – each year having a rebirth every spring. I’ve always had a strong feeling for this legend and a chat with my Canadian fellow visitors to the forest likened it interestingly to the wisdom of the Native American people and their adherence to the natural and supernatural world. A comparison between people of far apart continents and the link in the way they thought about the true wisdom of the world is a most interesting notion to me.

So a pleasant walk back toward the modern-day visitor centre and exit then. Not before a few minutes day-dreaming of younger more carefree times of playing with bows and arrows and trees that just had to be climbed. Sherwood Forest was really meant for that I considered. It’s a place of legends and of childhood dreams, a place where beliefs can be suspended and a journey into the past explored and lived out. For this it does not take a ‘visitor centre’ – just an imagination, a love of nature and a little romance in the soul. Explore the legend of Robin Hood and the secrets of the forest; you may learn a lot about yourself…