Situated in Nottinghamshire’s famous Sherwood Forest, Go Ape Sherwood seeks to be a fun day out for all ages. With a variety of different activities available, Go Ape provides the perfect opportunity to explore Sherwood Forest from the trees or from the ground! I was lucky enough to explore two of the activities that Go Ape Sherwood has on offer: Nets Kingdom and Tree Top Adventure. However, if heights aren’t your thing, there is also the opportunity to explore the surroundings on a Forest Segway.
Nets Kingdom
With four bounce nets, two net slides, and giant inflatable balls, Go Ape’s Net Kingdom is the ultimate experience for those who love trampolines. Being priced at £20 for children and adults over the age of 5, Nets Kingdom is excellent value for money. Adventurers are invited to climb up a gradually sloping net until they reach the bounce nets. Nothing could prepare me for how difficult it was to move on the bounce nets – I can’t even remember how many times I collapsed!
“All of the children around me adored this activity, and they certainly had more energy than me to enjoy the two hours of bounce time”
Adventurers are allowed up to two hours of bounce time. However, as a twenty year old, I felt that this time limit was rather generous. After one hour in Nets Kingdom, I found myself lying in one of the bounce zones feeling as exhausted as I did when I finished my half marathon last year. The fact that all there is to do in Nets Kingdom is to bounce made the experience quite repetitive and tiring. Somersaults were prohibited, which meant that adventurers could only bounce up and down. However, I would definitely recommend Nets Kingdom to children and to those with longer attention spans than me; all of the children around me adored this activity, and they certainly had more energy than me to enjoy the two hours of bounce time.
One of Nets Kingdom’s distinctive features was the giant inflatable balls. I immediately felt 7 again when I noticed the massive balls. However, due to the number of children present, I felt as though I couldn’t fully immerse myself on the giant inflatable balls. The net slides were lots of fun, however could be viewed as quite claustrophobic in nature.
“I would have enjoyed my experience more if there was a designated zone for adults to play on the giant inflatable balls”
Overall, I really enjoyed what Nets Kingdom had on offer, and would definitely recommend it. However, I would have enjoyed my experience more if there was a designated zone for adults to play on the giant inflatable balls. This would have allowed me to have fully immersed myself in the experience and not having to be continually conscious of squashing small children.
8/10
Tree Top Adventure
From Tarzan swings, to rope ladders, and zip wires- Go Ape’s Tree Top Adventure provides the perfect challenge for adrenaline junkies.
“I would definitely describe Go Ape’s Tree Top Adventure as zip wire heaven”
The variety of obstacles was fantastic, with there being five different courses for adventurers to explore, each having lots of different obstacles. Each course required the adventurer to climb up a rope ladder until they were in the tree tops ready to take on the course. At one point, I had to crawl through a tunnel that was suspended in the air, which was pretty scary. However, every course finished with a zip wire, which was the perfect way to obtain a bird’s-eye view of the surroundings and observe the beautiful Sherwood Forest. I would definitely describe Go Ape’s Tree Top Adventure as zip wire heaven!
Priced at a reasonable £33 for those older than 16, Go Ape’s Tree Top Adventure included all equipment hire, as well as access to all five of the different courses. The five courses took about three hours to complete. As an alternative fun day out, Go Ape’s Tree Top Adventure is definitely worth the money!
On the course, each adventurer is in charge of their own safety throughout the obstacles, having to transfer their carabiners from one rail to the next, along with setting themselves up for Tarzan swings and zip wires. Initially, this was particularly scary, but the instructor ensured that I was trained sufficiently to take on the obstacles safely, and prompted me to trust my harness. I’m not personally afraid of heights, but being in charge of my own safety was particularly scary; I was convinced that I’d somehow fall out of a tree. Nevertheless, I made it and am here to tell the tale.
With the obstacles reminding me of the obstacles in CBBC’s children’s adventure show, Raven, Go Ape’s obstacles permitted me to achieve my childhood dream of being on Raven, but without the fear of the demons.
10/10
I would definitely recommend the Tree Top Adventure; the variety of obstacles available kept me engaged throughout the different courses. One thing that I would have to say is that Go Ape Sherwood is only really accessible via car, making it difficult for those without a car to experience all of the amazing activities that Go Ape Sherwood has on offer. Nevertheless, I had an absolutely brilliant day out, and would definitely recommend a trip to Go Ape Sherwood to thrill seekers and for those looking for an alternative day out in Nottinghamshire.
Rosa Morgan
Featured image and first article image courtesy of Go Ape Sherwood Pines.
Second article image courtesy of Rosa Morgan.
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