Thursday the 14th – I’ve been away in Scotland for a week and otherwise busy, so couldn’t wait to get back in my woods after too-long a break. I spent the morning slashing more bramble to create paths into the tangled undergrowth. Made some good headway and it also gave me chance to see closely what else is growing in the way of wild flowers and young saplings. I really do need to get a brushcutter soon so I can clear some decent areas. Spotted a small furry brown creature scuttling amongst some deadwood. I think it was a bank vole. Heard a buzzard calling overhead and as I was playing with my birdsong app on my phone I played a clip of a wren. Seconds later, one popped out of the scrub and sang back to me. How sweet was that?

In the afternoon I had arranged a visit from the Woodland Trust officer. They have a project on in Yorkshire to help small woodland owners to return their woods to ancient woodland species. Lottery funding is allowing them to give free advice. The guy who came showed genuine interest and took two hours to walk my woods with me. I had supplied him with my draft management plan so he advised me on my ideas, plus gave lots of tips and ideas of his own. He spotted several species of plants growing in my overgrown area that I was not aware of – a small box tree and dogwood for starters. Gave some interesting ideas of how I could take advantage of already sparse areas by thinning the few remaining stems to create a bigger clear area for replanting. We also discovered some stones that had been investigated by archeologists over 20 years ago and found to be remains of an early dwelling possibly over 300 years old! Wow, how cool is that? No new photos this time.

I mainly went today to show some friends the wood. They were visiting from the USA and wanted to see it on route to their next destination. So it was a later start than usual. We had a nice walk around the “estate” and it was good to have some guests. I spent an hour or so showing them the areas that were accessible. We found a skull-bone – not sure what it is, either deer or fox maybe. Must check it out. Last week I noticed some fungi but couldn’t ID it. I took some more photos. I have a new book on fungi now and I think it’s Oak Bolete. It smelled of beautifully rich mushroom. One day I might risk cooking some when I am really sure. I spotted a small bird with a brown head – a female blackcap. One to add to my species list. It’s been incredibly dry for weeks now but that was about to change.

We noticed a pile of half ripe hazel nuts on the floor beneath a biggish hazel. Half eaten nuts. I guess the dreaded grey squirrel has been at them. I hope they leave some to repine for us. I cut a few more logs, started slashing brambles and then the heavens opened. Made a dash to the car with my gear and waited till it eased. It was getting late in the afternoon and I needed to pack up anyway but I am glad I took the time just to walk around in the gentle rain for a while. What a lovely experience, the rain hitting the leaves and making them flutter and the gentle sound of rain on leaves is wonderful. It’s not all about getting jobs done, you have to give yourself time to just savour the beauty and peace of it all. Can’t wait for the next visit.

Arrived about 8.45am – wanted an early start. There had been a little rain after the hot weather and when I stepped out of my isolating bubble (otherwise known as a car) and into my wood, the beauty of it hit me. That fresh damp earthy smell after rain. It was so quiet and peaceful, just a few birds singing and soft dappled sunlight illuminating patches on the woodland floor. I had to pinch myself that this was real and it was mine. I took a short stroll through the dark shady entrance and into the small areas that I had started to clear last week. Despite the tall bracken and bramble, it has an airy, open and sunny aspect. Huge black slugs were taking a stroll too! An unseen bird was singing it’s little heart out.

So my task for the day was – erect the small sign I had made with the wood name on it. Put up the first birds’ nest box I made (not sure yet if it’s in a good place – I faced it roughly north for coolness, and just put it on a tree that I can see when I’m sitting with a mug of coffee), cut some more logs for home and clear some of the dark, depressing, dead brushwood that has been piled around as cover for pheasants. Don’t know yet what to do with it. Don’t want to be too hasty and burn it, so I dismantled three of the wigwam shapes and piled it as a short dead hedge along the boundary. It can be a home for some creatures for now. One wigwam revealed a nice little hazel coppice when I cleared it. You could almost hear it sigh a breath of relief. In between jobs, I continued hacking my way into the so-called glade where I eventually want to be able to erect a small tent for over-night stops. Got a lot of work to do yet before that can happen.

My first hand made birdbox

Awhile ago I bought a Honeystove which uses small twigs to light a fire in. You can heat a billy can or kettle or whatever on it. Hadn’t used it until last week. It worked great then, took about 10 minutes to get the fire going and about 5 minutes to boil enough water for a brew. This week I struggled to find twigs that were dry enough and it took me about half an hour to make my coffee. Fun but time consuming. There are masses of deadwood there, so it’s going to be a case of finding out which twigs burn best (birch is supposed to contain a lot of oil but I couldn’t find many small dry twigs) and perhaps finding some way of storing some under cover. Here’s my initial base camp for a sit and a brew.

temporary base camp