Speulderbos

The Speulderbos on the Veluwe holds one of the oldest stands of beech in the country, planted or regenerated from around 1600 on former coppice ground, and it is known for the shape of the trees: many trunks lean, bend and spiral rather than growing straight, so a section of the wood is called the Dansende Bomen, the dancing trees. The usual explanation given on site is competition for light in a dense stand combined with the legacy of coppicing and grazing that damaged the young stems, and the effect is genuinely strange to walk through - trunks curving away from each other in a canopy with almost no undergrowth. Elsewhere the forest has old oak, wood banks marking medieval boundaries, and a network of hollow ways. Wild boar, red deer and badger are present, and the surrounding Veluwe is the largest area of continuous forest and heath in the country.

The landscape

• Leaning and spiralling trunks - the section called the dancing trees.
• Beech from about 1600 - among the oldest stands in the country.
• Medieval wood banks - old boundary earthworks through the forest.
• A bare forest floor - dense canopy leaving almost no undergrowth.

When to go

April to October; autumn for colour. Half a day.

Things to know

The dancing trees are one part of a large wood and are not signposted from every entrance - take a map. Parking is charged and fills at weekends. Ticks are common. Wild boar are active at dusk.

Nearby

The Hoge Veluwe and Kootwijkerzand are south-east; Garderen is close.