Located in one of those mysterious areas where the width of the world is a little fuzzy somewhere between the sewage works and an industrial estate Dead Dragon Copse is what few people would ever describe as a bushcraft paradise. Part swamp and strewn with long discarded rubbish covered in moss it's not exactly my first choice either but so few know of its existence in splendid isolation with unchecked growth do make it a rather special place. With no kids or dog walkers passing through local wildlife has thrived with enough rabbits to support a couple of roving urban foxes and the occasional human forager amongst the neglected Hazel. Fungi in abundance, Sloes, Hawthorn, Fireweed, Wild Garlic etc all grow nearby along with plenty of every-bodies favourites of Blackberries, Nettles & Dandelions during the summer. Wander over a couple of fields and you'll find running water and a patch of Beech trees to go nuts over.
The remains of a long dead Dragon in the pond, can you see it
Of course what's really nice about the place is the surrounding terrain that makes it almost impossible to spot any modest size wild camp with a full cooking fire during winter months when the green cover is sparse. Being relatively close to home as well is also a big bonus so a handy little place to test gear, practice the little things, get a brew on, cook a bit of food and basically chill for a little while. Come summer I will do a full base camp setup and post those pictures, if I did it now certain landmarks would be visible and folk could work out where this is exactly.
Yes, the amazing vegetable steamer stove (aka the Poor Man's Grilliput) is still part of my basic loadout. Today it's in Hobo mode with Hazel shavings and a Birch bark bundle to get the damp wood going with the minimum of smoke and fuss. I always feel this is cheating slightly as the only place to find Birch bark around this area is in Carmarthen itself between the town and the railway station but foraging is where you find it I guess.
It was all going really well for the most part sort of despite me and the wife managing to rip a stud out of my poncho/ camp cot whilst messing around. I had mainly gone today to play with my new 3x3m DD tarp that I got for Christmas and I think it will work out really well for the upcoming trips this summer where hopefully this time I'll be joined by the wife & dog. So expect to see more and better photo's as she's the camera wizard. Cut some nice wood to take home for a whittling project and we were just contemplating one last coffee before the final clear up and setting off for home when the Robin who had been following us around all day for insects & worms disturbed by our activity clearly unhappy with us leaving took a bum squirt into the billy-can of hot water...
The remains of a long dead Dragon in the pond, can you see it
Of course what's really nice about the place is the surrounding terrain that makes it almost impossible to spot any modest size wild camp with a full cooking fire during winter months when the green cover is sparse. Being relatively close to home as well is also a big bonus so a handy little place to test gear, practice the little things, get a brew on, cook a bit of food and basically chill for a little while. Come summer I will do a full base camp setup and post those pictures, if I did it now certain landmarks would be visible and folk could work out where this is exactly.
Yes, the amazing vegetable steamer stove (aka the Poor Man's Grilliput) is still part of my basic loadout. Today it's in Hobo mode with Hazel shavings and a Birch bark bundle to get the damp wood going with the minimum of smoke and fuss. I always feel this is cheating slightly as the only place to find Birch bark around this area is in Carmarthen itself between the town and the railway station but foraging is where you find it I guess.
It was all going really well for the most part sort of despite me and the wife managing to rip a stud out of my poncho/ camp cot whilst messing around. I had mainly gone today to play with my new 3x3m DD tarp that I got for Christmas and I think it will work out really well for the upcoming trips this summer where hopefully this time I'll be joined by the wife & dog. So expect to see more and better photo's as she's the camera wizard. Cut some nice wood to take home for a whittling project and we were just contemplating one last coffee before the final clear up and setting off for home when the Robin who had been following us around all day for insects & worms disturbed by our activity clearly unhappy with us leaving took a bum squirt into the billy-can of hot water...
making the most of your local enviroment, nothing like a brew out 
