Today marks the beginning of National Parks Week, the UK National Park family’s annual celebration of Britain’s breathing spaces.  Taking place between Monday 25 July and Sunday 31 July, this year’s National Parks Week theme is ‘adventure’.

To get the Week off to a flying start, National Parks UK are launching their new adventure children’s book. National Parks UK have teamed up with Mission Explore to produce the pocket sized book filled with challenges and adventures for children to try out and keep a record of when they are in one of the UK’s 15 National Parks.

Television presenter and National Park enthusiast Julia Bradbury said: ‘I absolutely LOVE this book, drawing a cow-pat emoji is a must-try! It’s so important to encourage kids to enjoy our UK National Parks from an early age and instil a love of the countryside that will last all their lives thus helping to secure the future of our protected landscapes’.

Helen Steer, Director of Mission Explore said “”The Mission:Explore team are extremely excited that our latest book is a collaboration with National Parks UK. Each member of the UK National Park family is a unique place, ideally suited for discovery, curiosity and creativity. Mae’n amser mentro! It’s time to explore!””

The book will be sold at a cost of £5.00 per copy and for this the reader can expect to be entertained by over 90 fun-filled pages, jam-packed with weird and wonderful ideas of things to do whilst at a National Park. It is aimed at encouraging children to explore the enormous world of the National Parks and engage them with all the brilliant things that are on offer throughout the UK. The book is available from outlets in the National Parks or online at www.nationalparks.gov.uk/missionexplore 

“Our book challenges the owner to become an extreme explorer, natural navigator and wildlife watcher in one of our 15 awesome National Parks.” Said Kathryn Cook, UK Director, National Parks UK.  “Missions range from simple tasks to more challenging ones. An example of a simpler task would be ‘Eat like a local’, encouraging children to try food produced by local businesses. At the other end of the scale there are challenges to ‘Go on a poo hunt’ and ‘Get stung’. Go explore our UK National Parks and have fun!  

All of the challenges were voted for by schoolchildren from all over the UK and the favourites were selected to be published. 

Nick Gardner, Co-Founder & CEO of Project Dirt said of the book “What a wonderful resource! Mission:Explore and the National Parks have developed a really imaginative way of re-engaging children with nature.  Through its wacky drawings and irreverent tone, this book effectively gets across a fundamental truth: exploring our natural world is FUN!””

To help everyone to make the most of National Parks, there are a number of Top 15 Adventure lists offering ideas to inspire young and old. These include ‘Adventures for the non-adventurous’, ‘Family-friendly adventures’ and ‘Quirky Adventures’.          

In addition, there is information on events taking place during National Parks Week, and ideas on how to get out and get active. Activities include walking routes, cycling and star-gazing. You can also find information on how to travel to the National Parks sustainably, making use of our car-free guides.

To learn more about National Parks Week, as well as search a database of National Parks Week events taking place close to you, visit: http://www.nationalparks.gov.uk/visiting/national-parks-week

There are 15  members of the UK’s National Parks family: the Broads, Brecon Beacons, Cairngorms, Dartmoor, Exmoor, Lake District, Loch Lomond & The Trossachs, New Forest, Northumberland, North York Moors, Peak District, Pembrokeshire Coast, Snowdonia, South Downs and Yorkshire Dales.