How to get to Lost Woods in Zelda Tears of the Kingdom

Lost Woods Zelda Tears of the Kingdom
(Image credit: Nintendo)

Want to get to the Lost Woods in Zelda Tears of the Kingdom? Korok Grove, Hestu and the Great Deku Tree are all at its center, but trying to get through Lost Woods teleports you back to the entrance as fog rolls over you. And yes, it does that no matter what angle you approach the forest from - so how do you solve this puzzle?

The way through is actually underneath, going via the Depths under the fog and Lost Woods to make it to the point where you can Ascend up into the Grove at the middle to find Hestu. It's not the easiest process in the world, but we'll explain it clearly below for those who are determined to get through the Lost Woods in Zelda Tears of the Kingdom.

How to get to the Lost Woods in The Legend of Zelda Tears of the Kingdom

(Image: © Nintendo)

To reach the Lost Woods in Zelda Tears of the Kingdom, the trick is to go under the woods via the Depths and Ascend at the right point. The process goes like this:

  1. Head to the Minshi Woods Chasm, back along the road leading to the entrance of the Lost Woods.
  2. Jump down the Chasm to the Depths. As always, you'll probably want a lot of Brightbloom Seeds when you're down here.
  3. Head Northeast on the path shown above. You'll be able to see a Lightroot in the distance - that's your target. 
  4. Activate the Lightroot. There's a few in the region, but the one you're looking for is Rikonasum Lightroot, under the very middle of Lost Woods.
  5. Go to the Stone Platform next to Rikonasum Lightroot. There's a huge column of stone above the platform going right up to the ceiling.
  6. Use Ascend beneath the column shown below! If you're in the right spot, you'll Ascend through it and up into the Korok Grove at the very middle of the Lost Woods!

Lost Woods Zelda Tears of the Kingdom

(Image credit: Nintendo)

The Deku Tree will be there, and depending on how much you've given him Korok Seeds, this might be the place at which Hestu starts showing up in Zelda Tears of the Kingdom.

The important thing to do first is to trigger the Musanokir Shrine right next to the Deku Tree, where you pop up the first time. Having this activated will ensure that you can use the Zelda Tears of the Kingdom fast travel feature to come back here at any time, skipping the whole sequence beneath the Depths itself. The Korok Grove is actually the location of a whole range of optional side quests you can do, so speak to the Koroks and the Deku Tree and see what they need! The great Tree himself has a particularly deadly quest for you, for which we highly recommend getting the Master Sword in Zelda Tears of the Kingdom first.

© GamesRadar+. Not to be reproduced without permission

Joel Franey
Guides Writer

Joel Franey is a writer, journalist, podcaster and raconteur with a Masters from Sussex University, none of which has actually equipped him for anything in real life. As a result he chooses to spend most of his time playing video games, reading old books and ingesting chemically-risky levels of caffeine. He is a firm believer that the vast majority of games would be improved by adding a grappling hook, and if they already have one, they should probably add another just to be safe. You can find old work of his at USgamer, Gfinity, Eurogamer and more besides.

Read more
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom screenshot of Link riding a horse across a vast field.
The best Zelda games of all time
A player and Chococat Hello Kitty Island Adventure.
How to find yellow power crystals in Hello Kitty Island Adventure
Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 Materia Prima Henry talking to miller Kreyzl
Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 Materia Prima walkthrough
Breath of the Wild
10 Games like Zelda that are full of exploration and adventure
Save System in Kingdom Come Deliverance 2
Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 For Whom the Bell Tolls walkthrough
Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 Battle of the Frogs and Mice meeting between Tachovites and Zhelejovites in the pasture
Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 Battle of the Frogs and Mice best ending and walkthrough
Latest in Adventure
Pokemon Legends: Z-A screenshot
Pokemon Legends: Z-A will allegedly introduce 27 new Mega Evolutions, leakers claim, and we can only hope Flygon gets its chance this time
Minecraft Vibrant Visuals
16 years after Minecraft first released it's getting a modern visual upgrade with a retro lighting trick that Mojang hasn't seen "in any other game"
Minecraft movie image of Jack Black as steve
Don't expect Minecraft to go free-to-play anytime soon, as Mojang says "It doesn't really work with the way we built it"
Putting cigarettes in fish mouths in Thank Goodness You're Here
Thank Goodness You're Here's developer says it was trying to design a game normally before realizing "we're s**t at video game design"
Pokemon TCG Pocket Shiny Cards
How to get Shiny Pokemon in Pokemon TCG Pocket
Pokemon Legends: Z-A screenshot
Pokemon Legends: Z-A's director appears to be a Xenoblade Chronicles fan, and I'm now feeling very validated about a tiny detail I spotted in the upcoming RPG's gameplay trailer
Latest in Guides
Assassin's Creed Shadows Naoe wearing black kosode
How to acquire a kosode in Assassin's Creed Shadows and should you choose red or black?
A character's face in horror game REPO.
Best REPO mods to improve your matches with more players and new monsters
Assassin's Creed Shadows Mitsumune and Naoe
How to find Mitsumune in Assassin’s Creed Shadows
Assassin's Creed Shadows engravings
Best Assassin’s Creed Shadows Engravings for all weapons and armor
Assassin's Creed Shadows Naoe facing off against samurai warrior on red bridge
Does Assassin’s Creed Shadows have New Game Plus?
FC 25
FC 25 Dreamchasers tracker and full UEFA promo guide