I visited the famous forest that inspired Winnie the Pooh
WE celebrate a century of Winnie-the-Pooh this year and, like Christopher Robin, I grew up playing Poohsticks in Ashdown Forest.
I was seven when I realised I had a fierce competitive streak. Raised in East Sussex, Ashdown Forest was a regular day out for my family.
I often dragged along my beloved Tigger, a raggedy stuffed tiger toy and my favourite of the Pooh crew.
A born hustler, I’d play Poohsticks with my brother — throwing twigs into the river to see whose could travel fastest. The prize? Chewits.
An hour from London, Ashdown Forest is famously the birthplace of Winnie-the-Pooh.
Sandwiched between East Grinstead and Crowborough, the 6,500-acre ancient woodland inspired author AA Milne, who lived with his family in Hartfield, on the fringes of the forest.
His charming tales of Winnie-the-Pooh and friends are based around the capers his son, Christopher Robin, had in that forest, playing with his favourite teddy bear and other stuffed toys, namely Piglet, Tigger, Eeyore and Kanga.
“Who needs Disneyland when you can play in the real Hundred Acre Wood?”, I’d tell my own kids when they were young, as we romped through the Enchanted Place, Galleon’s Leap and Eeyore’s Gloomy Place. And I’d win at Poohsticks.
A century later and Pooh’s Hundred Acre Wood is just as cool.
The best way to see it is to follow the Pooh Walk, a three-mile circular route starting from Gills Lap. You can also book a guided Pooh Trek and see more key story spots like Roo’s Sandy Pit and the Heffalump Trap, and the memorial to AA Milne and his illustrator EH Shepard.
Keep your eyes peeled for Owl’s House, hidden high in a tree, and Piglet’s House, which has a balcony and little door in the trunk.
Pooh’s House, just past Poohsticks Bridge, still has “Mr Sanderz” carved in the wood above the door, just like in the books, and honey pots left in tribute.
Poohsticks Bridge is, of course, the highlight. The original crossing, where Milne and his son first played the game, was built in 1907.
I challenge my dog Miss Babs to a game. But it’s an easy win for me as she’s reluctant to let go of her stick.
Like the little yellow bear, I also have a fondness for honey. After our muddy romp around the woods, Miss Babs and I head back to Hartfield for tea and cake.
With its red-brick oast houses and clapboard-fronted cottages, it’s easy to see why AA Milne loved this village. The appropriately-named Bear Inn is worth a peek.
This cosy, 15th-century pub serves great locally-sourced food, including a different freshly-prepped sandwich each day for £15, or burgers and beer-battered cod for £18.
Above the pub are four rooms, each named after Pooh characters.
Pooh Corner is an 18th-century cottage and former village shop where Milne and Christopher Robin, below with his bear, bought sweets.
It houses a gift shop and “Pooh-seum” — a museum about AA Milne, where I learn Christopher Robin named his bear after a Canadian black bear called Winnipeg (Winnie) from London Zoo, while Pooh is after a local swan.
There are of photos and memorabilia to capture your imagination.
And if you’re “rumbly in your tumbly”, as Pooh says, the tearoom serves cream teas, cakes and smackerels like crumpets with butter and Pooh-shaped toast with honey.
Turns out you needn’t go far for an adventure — just follow the bear . . .
GO: Ashdown Forest
