.50 cal Winds.

[JonathanD]

Decided to take the plunge and check out the tree damage in my favourite woods by our house. It’s on a ridge and gets really windswept usually, but luckily there was only a couple of small birch and a few oak branches down as far as I could tell. So I went into the next woodland which is much bigger. Sadly there was devastation everywhere. A load of birch and sweet chestnut had fallen like dominoes. Big trees too with root system around 8ft in circumference. Large pine trees down or missing their limbs. I gave up counting after around 70.





On the way back two large ones had been taken out in the fields…




It’s always horrible seeing such magnificent trees that I’ve seen since I was a kid destroyed. But in the way home the woods had a surprise for me. Last night some morons decided to camp out by an old WW2 bunker on the edge of another woodland. I don’t think they lasted long as there was still a load of firewood left there and a tarp was in a tree along with a chair further in the field. But they left this .50 cal bottle opener. So cheers for that.



P

 

[Broch]

Good find! but sad about the trees.
I haven't been able to get down to our wood yet because the wind is still too strong. I'm dreading what I could find.

 

[JonathanD]

It’s really sad. I can’t believe the first wood on the slope got away with it. It really gets the full force of storms. The second wood with the most damage is quite sheltered. And the trees down there were big. Some really massive oaks lost their lower limbs which took out the trees next to them. The big chestnuts took out everything in their path, including their brothers. I should have taken more pictures. But the weather was still awful and it was sleeting. Felt like I was being shot in the face with an airsoft gun constantly.

Hope your woods escaped serious damage.

 

[Falstaff]

It’s really sad

Mebbe darwinian, because the trees on the first slope are stronger/better roots etc. so are the only ones that survive? I recall the Forestry Commission plant a more flexible tree type on the edges of plantations to protect the less flexible higher value ones on the inside.
If you cut the trunk off and tipped the roots back upright, presumably they would take and there would be a sort of coppicing growback? Yes/No?

 

[Broch]

Highly unlikely to be honest. Whereas many hardwoods will coppice when young most struggle if the first cut is when they are mature.

 

[JonathanD]

Been testing the bottle opener. And that works great.

 

[Broch]

Been testing the bottle opener. And that works great.

View attachment 91917

Ah, one never knows, are you sure? sometimes these things work once then fail!

 

[Chris]

There was that sad tale of the man who perished in the Staffordshire wilderness after his newly found bottle opener failed after the 6th bottle. Better safe than sorry.

 

[Broch]

Exactly, that's what I'm talking about - though JD could wait to test it at the next camp

 

[JonathanD]

Exactly, that's what I'm talking about - though JD could wait to test it at the next camp

I’ll test it another three times tonight just to make sure. Wouldn’t want it to fail in camp.

 

[FerlasDave]

Nice find!

Shame about those trees though..

 

[British Red]

Decided to take the plunge and check out the tree damage in my favourite woods by our house. It’s on a ridge and gets really windswept usually, but luckily there was only a couple of small birch and a few oak branches down as far as I could tell. So I went into the next woodland which is much bigger. Sadly there was devastation everywhere. A load of birch and sweet chestnut had fallen like dominoes.

Sweet chestnut is lovely wood, hope it doesn't go for firewood!

 

[JonathanD]

It’s quite a well managed wood, so hopefully they’ll leave it for habitat.