In a bid to help children reconnect with nature, the National Trust asked more than 1,700 kids to vote on their top outdoor activities and reasons why, and then set about finding the ultimate places where they could be enjoyed.
Over half of the children questioned (63 per cent) chose tree climbing, den building and bike riding as the top three activities, with half (51 per cent) agreeing that tree climbing was one of their favourite activities as it is the most challenging.
The 50 things to Do before you’re 11¾:
1. Climb a tree – Wallington, Northumberland
2. Roll down a really big hill – Croome, Midlands
3. Camp out in the wild – Gibside, Yorkshire
4. Build a den – Lyme Park, Stockport
5. Skim a stone – Fell Foot Park, Cumbria
6. Run around in the rain - Finch Foundry, Dartmoor
7. Fly a kite - Dunstable Downs, Bedfordshire
8. Catch a fish with a net – Parke, Dartmoor
9. Eat an apple straight from a tree – Llanerchaeron, Ceredigion Coast
10. Play conkers - Osterley Park and House, London
11. Go on a really long bike ride - Wimpole Estate, Cambridgeshire
12. Make a trail with sticks - Longshaw and Eastern Moors, Peak District
13. Make a mud pie - Moseley Old Hall, Staffordshire
14. Dam a stream – Prior Park Landscape Garden, Bath
15. Play in the snow - Bodiam Castle, East SussexWinchelsea Countryside
16. Make a daisy chain - Lacock Abbey, North Wiltshire
17. Set up a snail race - Lyveden New Bield, Midlands
18. Create some wild art - Sheringham Park, Norfolk
19. Play Pooh sticks – Mottisfont, Hampshire
20. Jump over waves - Compton Bay and Downs, Isle of Wight
21. Pick blackberries growing in the wild - Castle Ward, County Down
22. Explore inside a tree - Hatfield Forest, Essex
23. Visit a farm - Cuckmere Valley, South Downs
24. Go on a walk barefoot - Strumble Head to Cardigan, Pembrokeshire
25. Make a grass trumpet - Hare Hill, Cheshire & Wirral Countryside
26. Hunt for fossils and bones - Birling Gap and the Seven Sisters, South Downs
27. Go star gazing – Tyntesfield, Bristol
28. Climb a huge hill - Ashridge Estate, Hertfordshire
29. Explore a cave - Yorkshire Dales, Yorkshire
30. Hold a scary beast - Clumber Park, Nottinghamshire
31. Hunt for bugs - Hardcastle Crags, West Yorkshire Countryside
32. Find some frogspawn – Springhill, Mid Ulster
33. Catch a falling leaf - Rowallane Garden, County Down
34. Track wild animals - Castle Drogo, Devon
35. Discover what’s in a pond - Florence Court, County Fermanagh
36. Make a home for a wild animal - Fountains Abbey & Studley Royal, Yorkshire
37. Check out the crazy creatures in a rock pool - South Milton Sands, Devon
38. Bring up a butterfly – Anglesey Abbey, Gardens and Lode Mill, Cambridge
39. Catch a crab - Plas Newydd, Wales
40. Go on a nature walk at night - Nostell Priory and Parkland, Yorkshire
41. Plant it, grow it, eat it - Tredegar House, South East Wales
42. Go swimming in the sea - Llyn peninsula, Llyn Wales
43. Build a raft – Borrowdale, North Lakes
44. Go bird watching - Kingston Lacy, West Dorset
45. Find your way with a map and compass – Chartwell, Kent
46. Try rock climbing - Brimham Rocks, Harrogate
47. Cook on a campfire – Stackpole, Pembrokeshire
48. Learn to ride a horse - Clandon Park, London
49. Find a geocache – Sizergh, South East Cumbria
50. Canoe down a river – Brancaster Millennium Activity Centre, Norfolk Coast
The 50 things website has loads of great information to help you tackle the 50 things adventures. Sign up online and receive:
50 things scrapbooks will be available free at over 350 participating properties (subject to availability).