Tentsmuir Forest

[Doc]

A very good place to visit. It's on the coast between Dundee and St Andrews.

Owned by Forestry Commission. Although full of people near the car park, you don't have to go too far and it is fairly quiet away from the tracks. It's big - twelve square miles! - and is mostly Scots Pine and Corsican pine. A lot of it is not too dense so you can walk around off the tracks (unlike your average impenetrable commercial Sitka spruce plantation.)

As it is in Scotland, you have the right to roam responsibly, and to wild camp responsibly. It is also close to the sand dunes and beach - although normally there is a public right to light fires on the foreshore in Scotland I'm not sure if this applies here as much is nature reserve.

Apparently mesolithic hunter-gatherers used to do live here.

It can get windy and cold -you would need to be well equipped.

 

[george]

I was just looking at the info leaflet for this place the other day - never been but looks good.

One particularly interesting thing is that there is so much Corsican pine - I wasn't aware that it was used for forestry. However IIRC thats where you get pine nuts from - the ones you pay about £3 for 50 grammes for in the shops.

George

 

[spamel]

Off topic, sorry. What does IIRC mean?!!

 

[Toddy]

I didn't know that they grew Corsican pine, Stonepine?? The Romans brought it into Britain but it doesn't ripen in our damp cold.....well..... so 'they' say. Did you look for any seeds Doc?

Toddy

 

[familne]

Yes, it's an excellent place indeed - somewhere I visit almost weekly! Good for rare orchids such as creeping lady's tresses and coralroot orchid in the summer, also a stronghold for red squirrel and crossbill. There used to be capercaillie too until about the 70's I think. Holds a couple of national nature reserves - Tentsmuir Point and Morton Lochs. Still big enough to get lost in!

 

[hootchi]

Off topic, sorry. What does IIRC mean?!!

If I recall correctly.

 

[spamel]

Cheers Hootchi, I've been trying to figure it out and thought it had something to do with Internationally Recognised Currency!!!!

 

[Doc]

I'm no expert, but looking at my tree books and my Forestry Commission Idiot's Guide to Trees (well, it's not exactly that title, but you know what I mean) I think Corsican pine is a subspecies of Black Pine, also known as Austrian Pine, and was introduced in the 18th century. Apparently the timber is considered inferior to Scots Pine.

I don't know if it's equivalent to Stone pine, or whether it produces pine-nuts - would be useful to know, from the foraging point of view.

I'd imagine it must be good crosssbill country but I've not yet seen the 'Scottish parrot' - I need to look up more!

I like the Corsican pine - the FC seem to mainly use it in coastal sandy areas. At Tentsmuir they are ca 80 years old and big. It is quite similar to Scots pine - my favourite forest tree. I have much sympathy with the various groups who want to see the Caledonian forest regenerated.