Thorncombe Wood Local Nature Reserve is a peaceful mix of woodland and heath on the edge of Dorchester, with easy paths that feel a world away from town. Tall oaks, sweet chestnut and beech trees give plenty of shade, and trails lead you out to open heath and the small, wildlife rich Rushy Pond.

It’s a lovely place for gentle walks, picnics and family exploring, with the bonus of Thomas Hardy’s birthplace close by.

Start your visit from the Hardy’s Birthplace Visitor Centre (free to enter) which provides a gateway to the site and hosts displays, family activities, a ranger workshop, café, shop and toilet facilities.

• Several recommended walking routes and fun activities for children are available on leaflets in the Visitor Centre or download some route maps before you go from the Dorset Council website
• Tramper hire is available Monday to Friday (advance booking is recommended). More information on Tramper hire on the Countryside Mobility website
• This is the perfect place to bring a picnic, there’s plenty of benches and picnic tables to use, but as it’s a high fire risk area, no BBQs or campfires are allowed.
• Alternatively enjoy something delicious from Under the Greenwood Tree café in the Visitor Centre. This is an independent family business run by Dorchester-born Sarah Key and her daughter Lydia using local produce.
• Dogs are welcome but please keep on a lead where asked to do so and it’s not an accessible site for cyclists or horse riders.

The site is also adjacent to Hardy’s Cottage, (pay to enter) birthplace of novelist and poet Thomas Hardy and now owned by the National Trust. Black Heath is now a small fragment of the once famous Hardy’s Egdon Heath and Rushy Pond is mentioned in ‘The Withered Arm’.

Visitors, wildlife enthusiasts, families and dog walkers are all encouraged to follow in Hardy’s footsteps and explore the land that he portrayed in his novels such as ‘The Woodlanders’ and ‘Return of the Native’.