A video version for anyone who prefers video (with subtitles):
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It took a couple of hours to get there on a rainy Sunday morning, but it was well worth the drive. By the time I arrived it had just stopped raining and the atmosphere in the woods was sublime.
Finn and I were there with a plan to find some mushrooms. In fact we found more mushrooms than I've ever seen in one place, I reckon. The forest was carpeted in them. Although mostly inedible ones, it was still brilliant to see the fungal life thriving in what is a beautiful ecosystem. Plenty of lush moss, animal sign, fungus and clean smelling air to spend the day roaming amongst.
Fairly early on in the walk; Gold! Mid sentence something caught the corner of my eye.
Even in the wet you can see why we've given them the name 'Penny Bun'. It's uncanny!
We were occasionally graced with the slightly haunting whistle of the steam train making its way along the North Yorkshire Moors Railway. It was the only sound occasionally puncturing the serenity of the forest and I don't much object to that sort of polite intrusion.
After a bit of a trek we stopped for a quick brew on the Firebox, which came to life quickly with a shower of sparks on some scraped birch bark and a generous little bundle of fatwood kindling.
The soot on my mug ended up giving me some nice black lipstick to wear for the rest of my trip. I'm apparently going through a goth phase slightly later in life, although unfortunately I am not sure I have the hair for it these days.
Yorkshire tea, of course.
Ashes all thoroughly doused and the area made good afterwards, as always.
After our quick brew stop, we headed out down a side path we'd not planned on, just because it looked interesting. Boy, am I glad we did. The cloud had let up to some warm sunlight which was pouring through a hole in the canopy and creating the most beautiful steamy glade.
After stopping to just enjoy this amazing little area of tranquility, we made our way down a slightly less friendly path. There was a fair bit of windfall here and it meant a bit of skirting around a rather steep near-cliffside, so a spot of light peril to finish the trip off before we drove home.
The day was wonderful. A perfect way to start astronomical autumn, enjoying the change in seasons and appreciating what the rain brings to these green and pleasant lands.
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It took a couple of hours to get there on a rainy Sunday morning, but it was well worth the drive. By the time I arrived it had just stopped raining and the atmosphere in the woods was sublime.
Finn and I were there with a plan to find some mushrooms. In fact we found more mushrooms than I've ever seen in one place, I reckon. The forest was carpeted in them. Although mostly inedible ones, it was still brilliant to see the fungal life thriving in what is a beautiful ecosystem. Plenty of lush moss, animal sign, fungus and clean smelling air to spend the day roaming amongst.
Fairly early on in the walk; Gold! Mid sentence something caught the corner of my eye.
Even in the wet you can see why we've given them the name 'Penny Bun'. It's uncanny!
We were occasionally graced with the slightly haunting whistle of the steam train making its way along the North Yorkshire Moors Railway. It was the only sound occasionally puncturing the serenity of the forest and I don't much object to that sort of polite intrusion.
After a bit of a trek we stopped for a quick brew on the Firebox, which came to life quickly with a shower of sparks on some scraped birch bark and a generous little bundle of fatwood kindling.
The soot on my mug ended up giving me some nice black lipstick to wear for the rest of my trip. I'm apparently going through a goth phase slightly later in life, although unfortunately I am not sure I have the hair for it these days.
Yorkshire tea, of course.
Ashes all thoroughly doused and the area made good afterwards, as always.
After our quick brew stop, we headed out down a side path we'd not planned on, just because it looked interesting. Boy, am I glad we did. The cloud had let up to some warm sunlight which was pouring through a hole in the canopy and creating the most beautiful steamy glade.
After stopping to just enjoy this amazing little area of tranquility, we made our way down a slightly less friendly path. There was a fair bit of windfall here and it meant a bit of skirting around a rather steep near-cliffside, so a spot of light peril to finish the trip off before we drove home.
The day was wonderful. A perfect way to start astronomical autumn, enjoying the change in seasons and appreciating what the rain brings to these green and pleasant lands.
