Lego

 

Who'd have thought that the Gods/Godesses played with Lego? But clearly they do, as one of them dropped a block on their way back to Asgard or Mount Olympus or the Otherworld or where ever the high level deities hangout these days. As if human lives weren't enough to play with, eh.

1877

I spotted this old piece of graffiti on a Beech near the Knightwood Oak; I love finding old graffiti, even more so when it's connected, or maybe connected, to historical events. 1877 is the year of the 'New Forest Act' which restricted the creation of any further large forestry enclosures in order to protect the Commoner's grazing land, it also recognised the open woodland as 'ancient' and re-establish the Verderer's Court which had previously been dissolved. There's something carved above the date, though whether it's letters and/or a symbol are uncertain due to distortions in the bark. I have to wonder if this double underlined date is in recognition of the Commoner's victory?

Eagle Oak

At near the same size as the nearby Knightwood Oak, we can assume that the Eagle Oak at a girth of 5.4 meters is about 600 years old, and so one of the oldest trees in the forest. Pre dating the Knightwood enclosure (1867) and the coniferous plantation in which it's now set by well over 400 years, we can only imagine the Eagle Oaks original setting.  It's name denotes the trees infamy as the tree in which the last New Forest Sea Eagle was shot by a local game keeper in 1810. Happily the Sea Eagle soars  again over the forest stands, with several sightings last year sparking hopes of a population developing local.

Tenacious tree

Trees teach us many things, such as, to stay grounded, to be patient, to keep growing and to weather life's storms. With reference to the last point, the forest is full of tenacious trees, ones that although mortally wounded, heroically stand firm against the relentless elements, some even appear to stand in defiance of logic and physics. Take this gnarled Beech who still reaches upwards and whose canopy still thrives, though doing so with only a tiny fraction of it's trunk remaining. Isn't nature wonderful.

Tenacious Tree

The tenacity shown by some of the forests trees in their resolve to endure is astounding. The bulk of this veteran Beech is long gone, only a hollow veneer of bark remains as a trunk. Just one lower bough, which looks like it survived whatever did for the tree, still reaches for canopy.  Though still it endures, it still strives for a place. The grasping bough has a myriad of branches trusting from it in all directions, it looks healthy and clearly bore leaf; a few leaves still cling on in denial of winters approach.  How long has it stood like this? I don't know. Though so long as for nothing to remain of its debris amongst the litter. Remarkable. The forest is full of wonders.