Due to some heavy felling and not very sympathetic thinning, I have had to look for a new training area for our bushcraft events, here at Chopwell Wood.
In fact I have had my eye on a perfect area for some time, so the contractors have actually done us a favour, in a twisted kind of way.
Anyway, I needed to do a full check of the new area, I knew there were one or two bits that need looking at and sorting out, so I had a look last Tuesday.
It's an area of mainly beech, with a few holly bushes scattered about and just one or two birch and oak.
there are numerous stumps remaining from the clear felling done during WW2-amazing how they have lasted.
Size wise; it is at least; 6 or 7 times larger than the area used for shelter building before, so it took a while to have a good scratch about.
This is the sort of thing I was looking for and was the reason I had humped a length of old climbing rope along:
This is an old conifer which has died and then been blown over and hung up in a beech next door
I managed to get the rope round a couple of remaining branches at the first chuck!, then retired a good few yards and pulled.
The more or less expected happened and I had the main bit on the ground
and the upper bit still hanging
A couple more rodeo chucks of the rope (well okay! lots, in fact many) had the top bit on the ground too.
You have to make sure you are well clear with this sort of thing as they often perform amazing acrobatics on their way down.
I wandered around noting a few odds and ends then made my way back, via the latest "thinning" area.
As I was walking down the hill, I could hear the occasional tap tap of a woodpecker nearby.
After about 5 mins of standing staring into the tree's
I finally spotted the woodpecker responsible:
This was right at the top, among a tangle of branches, also at maximum zoom (18X)
It all still looks a bit bleak at the moment but with plenty of promise.
Just thought some of you might be interested
all the best
Steve
In fact I have had my eye on a perfect area for some time, so the contractors have actually done us a favour, in a twisted kind of way.
Anyway, I needed to do a full check of the new area, I knew there were one or two bits that need looking at and sorting out, so I had a look last Tuesday.
It's an area of mainly beech, with a few holly bushes scattered about and just one or two birch and oak.
there are numerous stumps remaining from the clear felling done during WW2-amazing how they have lasted.
Size wise; it is at least; 6 or 7 times larger than the area used for shelter building before, so it took a while to have a good scratch about.
This is the sort of thing I was looking for and was the reason I had humped a length of old climbing rope along:
This is an old conifer which has died and then been blown over and hung up in a beech next door
I managed to get the rope round a couple of remaining branches at the first chuck!, then retired a good few yards and pulled.
The more or less expected happened and I had the main bit on the ground
and the upper bit still hanging
A couple more rodeo chucks of the rope (well okay! lots, in fact many) had the top bit on the ground too.
You have to make sure you are well clear with this sort of thing as they often perform amazing acrobatics on their way down.
I wandered around noting a few odds and ends then made my way back, via the latest "thinning" area.
As I was walking down the hill, I could hear the occasional tap tap of a woodpecker nearby.
After about 5 mins of standing staring into the tree's
I finally spotted the woodpecker responsible:
This was right at the top, among a tangle of branches, also at maximum zoom (18X)
It all still looks a bit bleak at the moment but with plenty of promise.
Just thought some of you might be interested
all the best
Steve
