Yesterday the temperature was predicted to hit the high 20s Celsius. I left home around 7am and a low mist hung across the landscape. There were some fantastic photography opportunities but my mission was to get to the woods early. One of my neighbours had been camping overnight but needed to get away by mid morning and I wanted to meet him and have a catch-up before he left. He is a keen bushcrafter and nature lover and we always have plenty to talk about. One of the joys of having friends who share your interests, is being able to chat, swap ideas and stories without the risk of boring someone to death! His camp is minimal in true bushcraft fashion and I admired the simplicity of it compared to my more elaborate set-ups. A hammock slung between two trees and one rucksack for his gear. A cooking tripod made from hazel rods stood over a small smouldering fire. It felt good and I was grateful to be invited into someone else’s woodland sanctum. I wished I was staying over and we made a loose plan to possibly do an Autumn overnighter together.

It was to be another day where nothing much was planned, just to enjoy being in the woods and it’s cooling atmosphere on such a hot day. I eagerly checked the trailcam but disappointed again to find that it mainly contained shots of wood pigeons and grey squirrels drinking from the bucket. The night time shots of the Tawny Owl had been cut short to two seconds and I think that was due to low battery power. After lots of walkabout and photography I decided I should do a couple of jobs. I still have lots of logs lying around, waiting to be split and stacked for firewood, so I set about splitting a pile. Most were small and split easily so it didn’t overheat me. I sorted some from an older stack to take home for firewood.

I packed up a little early with some reluctance but decided to take one more short walk around, just to absorb the beauty of the woods. I looked up through a small opening in the tall tree canopy which formed a perfect woodland picture frame. I was rewarded with a beautiful blue sky, dotted with little fluffy clouds and a magnificent buzzard way up high, wheeling around and simply enjoying the thermals. A perfect ending. I leave you with a few more photos.