Go with the flow 

Top places to feel the wonder of the wet in the UK

1. The Flows of Caithness and Sutherland

   Nearly five per cent of the world’s blanket bog is in the Flow country in Caithness and Sutherland. It’s arguably the best example of Atlantic blanket bog complex in the world and the largest in Europe. RSPB Scotland has been restoring the Flows with a range of partners.
   ^The Flows NNR, Forsinard. Lorne Gill/SNH/2020VISION

2. Flanders Moss

   One of the biggest and best raised bogs in Britain and easily accessible to the populous central belt of Scotland. NatureScot cares for the Flanders Moss Nature Reserve, which boasts a lookout tower and wooden walkways to get you into the midst of the moss.
   ^Bridge on Flanders Moss, Neil Aitkenhead, Creative Commons

3. The Peak District

   Peatland author, Clifton Bain, writes that restored peatland along the Pennine Way offers some of the best peatland experiences, particularly around the summits of Kinder Scout, Bleaklow and Black Hill. Over decades, restoration has helped carpets of colourful mosses and beautiful bog cotton replace the bare eroded peat hags that were once a feature of this upland blanket bog.
   ^Tree on Kinder Scout. David Brown, Wikimedia Creative Commons

4. Isle of Skye

   There’s perhaps no better place to muse upon the magic of peat bogs than in the shadow of the craggy Cuillin. Skye is home to significant stretches of peatland including the Sligachan Peatlands, a growing blanket bog that’s designated a Special Area of Conservation. The John Muir Trust recently restored 35 hectares of peat bog at Strathaird, removing Sitka Spruce plantation and smoothing out furrows to help raise the water table and encourage the return of bog mosses and other vegetation.
   ^Glen Sligachan lochan, Alexander M Weir

5. Wicken Fen

   The National Trust has restored over 700 acres of wetland to create one of England’s best examples of undrained fenland. Wicken Fen boasts more than 9,000 species of plants, birds and invertebrates and is home to grazing ponies and Highland cattle that help nurture the fen. It’s a small remainder of what was once thousands of acres of peatland stretching across Cambridgeshire, Lincolnshire, Norfolk and Suffolk.
   ^Wicken Lode, Wicken Fen. Hugh Venables, Creative Commons

Want more?

• If you’re feeling inspired to visit more peatlands, check out Clifton Bain’s book, ‘The Peatlands of Britain and Ireland: A Traveller’s Guide’