There’s a brand new Zog trail at Wendover Woods (and other Forestry England woods across the UK) for 2023. This time it’s another AR collabration with Magic Light Pictures. Although my review of the Zog trail was done at Wendover Woods, the trails will be largely the same across all sites, only the route itself will vary.
BEFORE YOU GO – Make sure that you download the free app from the app store. Just search for Zog: A Forest Adventure by Magic Light Pictures. Let’s face it, wi-fi signal can be patchy in the woods and you don’t want to be messing around whilst you’re there.
For my main review of Wendover Woods itself have a look at the review page here.
The trail pack
Just like with previous years there is an optional trail pack. It’s £4 per pack. You definitely don’t need to have the pack to do the trail, although we got a lot out of having ours (for reasons that will become apparent). The wings are a significant improvement on the masks / headbands that used to be in the bags. They would inevitably tear within a nanosecond and it would all end in tears. So much so I actually took a stapler with me just in case!
Inside the pack you get; Zog wings and string, sticker sheet, trail activity booklet, glasses, pencil and crayon.
The Zog: A Forest Adventure App
Oh, it all started so well. We “found” Zog in the forest. The kids took photos with him and then set off along the trail. At each board along the way there’s also a zog shaped shadow market. Scan that, and it unlocks an AR activity to do together.
First up, learning to fly. Now, I assumed it would be the same as previous apps and you had to do it until it popped up saying well done. They’ve ditched that (probably because it was annoying and didn’t work) but I didn’t realise it so spent about 5 minutes flapping around the forest. Still, it’s good for the bingo wings. If you haven’t downloaded the app it doesn’t matter the activity you do in-app is actually mentioned on the boards anyway.
Turns out, that’s a very good thing because after the first two markers the app died on us. It just wouldn’t open the camera to scan the markers. I reset it, uninstalled and reinstalled it, change and resumed the settings. Nothing. I gave up in the end. However that means I can’t tell you what the grand finale is. Sorry. I have downloaded it again a few days later and it seems to be working so either we were unlucky or it was just having a bug-y day. Hopefully it’s all sorted now.
The Zog trail at Wendover Woods
As I’ve mentioned the Zog trail at Wendover Woods doesn’t need you to download the app or buy the pack. Both are completely optional. The boards around the route all have activities written on them for you to do (practice your dragon breath etc). The route at this site follows the long loop of the play trail so you can stop off and play along to way if you want to.
Each board links up to the different things Zog learned in each year at school. EXCEPT there’s no capturing princesses or fighting! They link Zog’s lessons to the forest/mindfulness so learning how to road becomes listening carefully etc.
Instead of capturing a princess you “capture the moment”. I didn’t notice whilst we were at Wendover Woods that they’d changed it, it’s only as I’m writing the review of the Zog trail up that I realised what they did! Doh! Instead of running of with Princess Pearl you’re forest bathing.
Our Forestry England Zog trail review
The Forestry England trail at Wendover Woods is usually good, and the new Zog trail is as well. It kept Smallest Child’s attention better than the last one did – she seemed to wane a bit about half way through last time. It’s a shame the app wasn’t working, but we did try it out on the first day of go-live and it seems to be working now I’m at home so I think it was just a blip. You can absolutely do it without either the app or the pack though and having it alongside the play trail means if they lose interest in the Zog trail they can just go off and play instead.
Admission
Free to complete the trail. Free app. Trail packs cost £4.
Address
We did the Zog trail at Wendover Woods, Buckinghamshire but it’s also taking place at various Forestry England across the UK. Visit their website for the complete list. Parking charges apply at most sites, please see the individual location websites for details.