Paths of discovery in South Yorkshire: natural and historical wonders meet on Hatfield Moors

It’s possible to walk for hours in this rehabilitated landscape with its space for endangered birds, rare beetles, tantalising pathways and a Buddhist retreat

“Watch!” Mick Oliver, my guide, takes a big jump on the scrubby ground. To my surprise, the earth ripples beneath our feet. “Did you see the heather vibrate? Just below us the peat is about 95% water,” he says. “We are literally walking on water.”

I’m at Hatfield Moors, 13 miles east of Doncaster in South Yorkshire, to explore rare habitat – the UK’s largest lowland raised mire. Oliver, a passionate, active octogenarian and former mining surveyor, is part of a management group responsible for the moors’ conservation. He’s sharing some of his profound knowledge of flora, fauna and mycelium – gained over 30 years of walking, working on, studying and, at times, fighting for this land – before I explore the 1,400 hectare (3,500-acre) wetland.