Diary of a man and his woodland

A blog about a man's dream to own a small woodland.

Monthly Archives: December 2022


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Unwelcome visitors and a new friend at the woods.

A couple of neighbours reported things being disturbed in their plots and two of my mallets, kept in this little store, were found in their plot. One of the neighbours captured an image on his trail cam of these three scrotes. The top picture shows they had pulled the pallets away which normally cover the front, been into the dustbin where the mallets and rope were and scattered some things around. I don’t keep any valuable tools there but losing any would cause some inconvenience. They didn’t seem to have damaged anything which surprised me. Just annoying.

I’ve had problems with my camper not starting in the cold which caused a lot of stress last week. I had it booked in for fixing but it wouldn’t start at all. I had to get it towed away and it really knocked my confidence. My mental state is very fragile these days and it doesn’t take much to push me over the edge. Well my diagnosis was correct, it was the diesel glow plugs – all four were faulty and replaced and now it starts straight away – yeah. Last visit I tried to make a brew and heat soup on the gas rings and they failed to light. At first I thought it was the gas cylinder that was empty but when I took it out to get it changed, I discovered it had plenty. So either the stove was faulty or I wasn’t operating it right. This time I decided to read the manual, tried it again, nothing. I discovered I need to turn the power on the main panel to get the spark/igniters to work. A step forward but still no gas. Eventually it came through and lit and I had my first brew of coffee. I was elated, another problem solved and a step nearer to getting some mini adventures in my van. I sat in the side door looking out into my woods drinking my coffee, winter sun on my face and a mild day – it gave me a tiny hint of how this little van can bring some pleasure back into my life.

My main job was to bring a load of logs back. With the incredibly cold weather we had last few weeks, my stocks at home were running low. The space in the camper will fit quite a few crates (2 or more) and at least five trugs and there’s at least two weeks supply in there.

It was quite a lonely day and I saw no-one. It’s getting close to Christmas which is going to be very difficult having lost my wife earlier this year. I didn’t really like it much anyway and have been trying to ignore it as much as possible. No decorations or trees up. Cards sent to me are just in a pile. I don’t want continual reminders around the house. It will be the first time in over fifty years I have not been with my wife on Christmas day. Ideally I would have come here for the day but I have my daughters to think of and they want to see me – totally understandable. So many bereaved people just want to run away and hide. It’s another aspect of the fight or flight response that we feel for a very long time and this annual reminder will probably stay difficult forever for many. Christmas is a monster chasing us. If you know someone who has recently lost their partner please try not to wish them a Merry Christmas. There is no way it is going to be merry in the slightest. Just say you’ll be thinking of them.

Onto a more uplifting subject (bear with me, it’s bitter sweet). I also lost my very friendly robin that had followed me around for a few years. Up till now I haven’t had a replacement. Just the odd one bobbing about. As I was about to leave, one flew down a few metres away. I said hello to it. It looked at me and proceeded to hop nearer and nearer until it was at my feet. It seemed to have no fear of me (and why should it but it’s their survival instinct). It hopped around and even me moving didn’t scare it off. I got some food and enticed it toward me again, putting my open hand with food on the ground. Soon it took several pieces, stepping back a little to eat it, then onto my finger tips where it stayed eating the food. How special was that? It lifted my mood and I can’t wait to see if I can get a repeat in future visits.

Not much else to tell so I’ll just leave a few more photos of this wonderful place. Hope your Christmas’s are good or at least bearable.


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Some welcome sunshine at the woods

After weeks of grey, wet and dreary weather, the sun came out yesterday and it makes such a difference at this time of year. My general mood is low these days but a day at the woods raises it for a while and the added bonus of sunshine was very welcome. A few weeks ago I felled a small diameter tall sycamore with a bow saw. I liked the idea but it didn’t cut well and after some research decided to buy a new one and give it another go. It was a big improvement. I picked what looked like an easy tree to fell but as per usual, it got hung up. A bigger heavier tree would have just brushed it’s way through the small branches that were holding it back. A rope around it and a pull sideways dislodged it straight away and it fell where I wanted it. I cut it into manageable lengths and carried it back to my base where I will use the chainsaw to cut into firewood sized logs at a later date.

It’s the middle one and you can see it’s snagged on the left hand one. The rope around it was then tied as tight as I could to another tree to the right, preventing it slipping down, then a couple of tugs to get it swinging and it was out.

It was time for a brew and I had intended using the camper stove for the first time. I’d brought a tin of soup for lunch and intended heating that on the stove too. I couldn’t get it to light, wondered if I wasn’t using it correctly. So what I should have done a long time ago, was check that there was actually any gas in the bottle! I had assumed there was and you know what assume does – it makes an ass out of u and me. Being in the woods meant I had other options but if I’d headed off somewhere for a trip and a hot lunch I would have been snookered. So it was a good exercise and a lesson in preparation. Lighting a fire is always a treat anyway!

Apart from a cheeky wren shouting at me and a robin that followed me around while logging, I saw nobody, but I never feel alone when in the woods. I am surrounded by life who I consider to be my allies. I’ve said it before, I become a component part of the woods, I am of the woods, an equal, no more no less than the rest be it a mighty beech tree, a millipede or a tiny mushroom. We are all connected across the whole planet yet mankind has, on the whole, disconnected and forgotten, placing himself above it and damaged and poisoned it. Watching a tiny bird foraging for food reminds me how we should be, just take enough for our needs and look after it. That’s my role in this tiny patch of earth, to do my best to look after it.

Apart from taking a few logs home I had no other jobs planned for the day so I spent some time just walking around, observing and letting the energy of the woods recharge me. A few more photos of this beautiful place –

A flock of gulls gently circled above me, mesmerising and peaceful in the autumn sun.

Two trees hanging onto a few leaves, glowing in the sun.

Gorgeous colours of sycamore and lime leaves among the brown oak and beech

Rosie Bonnet fungi