Walk of the Week: Lochore Meadows Country Park, Fife

MY TWO young children are like most two- and five-year-olds; full of beans, laughter, contradictions and the ability to make you smile even when they wake at 4am.

And like all parents, I only want them to do things that make them happy and keep them safe.

When it comes to going out walking, I hope they will get as much out of being in the countryside as I do, whether it be up a mountain, along a beach or through woodland.

So, to avoid putting them off wearing a pair of walking boots, I have decided that a gentle introduction is necessary. Dragging a child moaning and crying up a steep mountainside runs the risk of portraying walking as an activity to be dreaded.

One good way to get very young children interested is to provide plenty of distractions along the way, whether it is a snack or tales of bears in the woods. Lochore Meadows Country Park, in Fife, is a good place to head. Here there is a loch with wildfowl to look at, a playground and a walk in the woods above. Maybe the promise of going up a “mountain” in days to come if they are “good walkers” will whet their appetite for a life amidst the wonderful countryside across Scotland. Here’s hoping.

DISTANCE 3½ miles.

HEIGHT CLIMBED 300ft.

TIME 1½ to 2 hours.

MAP OS Landranger 58.

PARKING Drive a couple of miles north of Lochgelly on the B920 and turn left at a roundabout to reach the country park centre.