I hope you all had a nice Christmas. After sitting around, eating, drinking and being lazy for the last few days, I was keen to get back to the woods and burn off some calories. Yesterday started out very frosty but the drive was a good one. Despite a fog warning, there was none and I arrived as the sun was rising and all was still. A hard frost covered everything and it was good to walk around and just take in the beauty of the woods.
I love the woods in winter, no biting insects and easy to stay cool when working. You can see the actual structure easily and where certain features lie in relation to each other. The place looks so much smaller though. As the New Year approaches, it reminds me how quickly time goes and that I need to get a move on with my plans. The sap will start rising again in a few months and I panic slightly as I know there are far more jobs than I can handle in the time left. More sycamore thinning and hazel coppicing to do before Spring. My main objectives were to extend the dead hedge I started a few weeks ago which will take the brash from the last felling and tidy up the ground. It might seem like a low priority when there is so much felling to do but it will make clearing up afterwards easier. The hedge building took up most of my day as it is very labour intensive. First I needed to find suitable poles for the stakes and bash them into the ground. Then it’s a case of dragging the brash from here and there and rough weaving it between the posts. Here’s a shot of the posts ready for the brash. Not much to see yet.
But then several hours later, it became this. I can add to it as I do further fellings.
I stopped for a coffee break and a robin soon came to investigate the new works. No doubt, sussing out that there might be some insects disturbed and a ready meal to be had. I put some dried mealworms on my chopping block to encourage it and hid behind a tree with camera ready at full zoom. Robin cautiously approached and gave me the opportunity for some lovely shots. Appropriatley festive eh?
