Rendlesham Forest UFO Trail offers a wonderful day out for all the family. There are numerous trails to follow and an amazing play area complete with climbing frames, log tunnels and adventure courses.
Rendlesham Forest UFO Trail
Rendlesham Forest is infamous for reports by the US Air Force of UFO sightings in 1980 – discover more of the mystery by picking up the UFO Trail leaflet at the forest centre.
The Short film on the UFO landing at Rendlesham can be viewed here
1. The first of several sightings occurred in the early hours of December 26, 1980
2. The sightings took place near RAF Bentwaters and RAF Woodbridge in Rendlesham Forest – RAF Bentwaters was an airbase used by the United States Air Force (USAF) during the Cold War until 1993
3. It is one of the few officially documented UFO sightings where witnesses claim to have seen a craft land – Nick Pope, who was a Ministry of Defence employee from 1985 to 2006, and who wrote a book titled ‘Encounter in Rendlesham Forest: The Inside Story of the World’s Best Documented UFO Incident’, described the incident with the following words:
“This was not some vague ‘lights in the sky’ sighting – the UFO actually landed.”
4. U.S. Air Force officer John Burroughs described agitated animals and red and blue lights near a farmhouse
One of the men asked to investigate the strange blue, red, orange, and white lights coming from the forest was, John Burroughs. A witness statement said:
“The woods lit up and you could hear the farm animals making a lot of noises… You could see the lights down by a farmer’s house [on the forest’s edge]… We climbed over the fence and started walking toward the red and blue lights and they just disappeared.”
To read the rest of the 21 Facts surrounding the UFO siting click here
The Walk
From the car park you can head deeper into the forest through conifer plantation, heathland and wetland by following the longer red Phoenix Trail.
White markers indicate short cuts back to the car park so you can adapt the walk to suit your needs.
Alternatively, dare to follow the UFO Trail (3 miles, 5km) or enjoy a relaxing amble along Daisy’s Walk (2.75 miles, 4.3km).
Both are clearly signed with further information available from the forest centre.
Shingle Street Walk
Another great Walk is “The Shingle Street Walk” – This route extends 11 miles from Bawdsey to Chillesford, and while it doesn’t take you anywhere near the beautiful heath this area is so renowned for, it does give an excellent flavour of the coastline. To read more on this walk just click here


There is so much to see and do...
2 days is just not enough!
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A handy at a glance guide to easy / short walks in Suffolk.
