Family Friendly Kent: We visited West Blean and Thornden Woods between Canterbury and Herne Bay to see the Wilder Blean project

With the weather getting warmer, I decided it was time to get outside and explore some of Kent’s beautiful countryside.

I used to love going on walks before I had kids - not too far, usually five or so miles with a nice country pub at the end. But my children are not the best walking companions. After about half an hour, we usually have run out of snacks and they start moaning their legs are tired. But this time I had a plan.

I would make the walk a lot more exciting by going on a bison hunt.

After reading about West Blean and Thornden Woods, which is home to a herd of eight bison, I thought it was the perfect place for a family stroll with a twist

The Wilder Blean Bison Project, led by Kent Wildlife Trust and Wildwood Trust, began in 2022 when three females and a bull were first released in the woodland between Canterbury and Herne Bay.

Since then, the herd has been thriving, with the arrival of four calves.

So on a sunny Sunday afternoon, we set off with a backpack full of snacks and high hopes of spotting some wildlife.

The site was easy to reach following a sat nav and when we arrived, there were two small car parks to choose from.

At the start of the route was a map with several suggested walks of varying lengths. The Wilder Blean Walkabout route to see the bison is 10.1km but you don’t have to do it all.

We were, however, a little disappointed after checking the map and finding the Exmoor ponies and Longhorn cattle are no longer in the woods as they have been moved to another Kent Wildlife Trust site and the bison were only currently located in the far corner of the woods so we had a long way to go.

The kids, however, were actually enjoying being outdoors and exploring. My son was fascinated by several giant ant nests we came across and they were both having fun climbing trees and spotting butterflies. The woods is also home to wild pigs but sadly, we didn't spot any of those.

After about an hour of walking, the kids were getting a little weary and we had failed to see any bison.

But then we took a path that runs alongside Wildwood animal park. So instead of bison, we got to see a goat, a deer and some wallabies, including a rare albino wallaby, which the kids thought was great.

Not long after this, we finally got to see what we had come for - some bison.

It was probably the furthest we could have been from the car park but the kids were so excited to see them, I think they forgot about the long walk.

We saw four huddled together quite near the fence, so we were able to get close to them. We then walked a little further and got a clear view of two more bigger ones.

It was then a long walk back through lots of mud to reach the car. But buoyed by seeing the bison (and another snack) there were no complaints from the children.

Construction has begun on a network of “bison bridges” at the woods which will allow the creatures to cross the public footpaths and roam more freely, while also offering a great vantage point to potentially catch a glimpse of them. So it will be good to come back to the woods when these are all complete.

There's no cafe on site and I had worked up a thirst by the time we got back to the car park so we drove a short distance to The Rose in Bloom pub near Whitstable to enjoy a drink in the pub garden.

There’s a little play area for kids and the bar was happy to serve two ice creams along with our drinks so the children were happy. While the kids were playing, we could enjoy the stunning view so it was a win all round.

Food and drink: There’s nothing on site so make sure you pack a picnic. It was a good excuse to stop at a pub on the way home though! * (but we’d give the pub *****)

Toilets: Again, there’s nothing on site, so if little ones need to go, it will have to be wild wee *

Parking: There are parking charges of £2 on weekdays and £2.50 on weekends. You can pay at a machine or on Ringo. We had no trouble finding a space. There were dedicated disabled and parent and child spaces ****

Cost: Apart from parking, it is a free day out so a good thing to do in the school holidays when you have to make your money go further - so five stars for value for money *****

Location: The address for the car park is Thornden Wood Road, Canterbury, Kent, CT6 7NZ.

Kids’ verdict: Millie said: “We walked a really long way but it was exciting to see the bison.” Max said the bison were “cool” - praise indeed from a 10-year-old who usually has his nose stuck in a games console ***