Epping Forest
Six thousand acres of ancient woodland on London's northeast edge, free, saved for the people by Victorian law, with deer, glassy ponds and a free Tudor hunting lodge.
The lowdown
Epping Forest is the largest open space in London, nearly six thousand acres of ancient woodland, heath and pond stretching from the edge of the city out into Essex. It is genuinely wild, a fragment of the old royal hunting forest, and it is all free.
It survives because of a famous Victorian fight. Locals battled enclosure by landowners, and the Epping Forest Act of 1878 handed it to the City of London Corporation to keep open for the people forever. Queen Victoria herself declared it dedicated to the enjoyment of her people.
Near Chingford stands Queen Elizabeth's Hunting Lodge, a striking timber-framed Tudor building that is free to visit, and herds of deer still roam the deeper woods. With miles of unpaved trails, lakes and ancient pollarded trees, it is a free escape that feels a hundred miles from London.
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