Autumn

Autumn now has a firm grip on the forest. The leafs on the trees are still predominantly green, though their verdance fades with every day, as more russet tones appear. You can feel Autumn bedding in. The forest is quieter now, the woodland communities hunker down for they know what's to come. The canopies aren't quiet though, no, the wind rakes through them shouting its intent and all about the sweet rich petrichor of autumns first rains fills the air and your senses. Although by their nature seasons are change,  it's through Autumn and Spring that you can really feel the transformational nature of.....nature. Sit a while, immerse yourself, take it all in; you'll feel all the better for it.

Great Huntley Bank

The rivers rise and fall with the passing of each rain shower which washes clean the forest. All the dingy pools of which many huddled in the meanders and dried up gravel beds of the summer season have been flushed and the forests streams once again run clear. The rains haven't penetrated much though, for the most part the ground remains firm under foot; no, on contact with the hardened forest floor rain merely heads for the nearest stream or brook, to be whisked beyond the forest bounds and off out to sea. Soon you wont be able to ford most of the bigger streams, like here on Highland Water, well not without the high chance of a dunking or at the least filled boots. All the seasons present different challenges to the walker, insisting you change many of your regular routes and roams. There are routes that soon I shalt walk again until spring or early summer and other that I'll return to now,  having left them un-walked, by me anyways, since spring gone. A change is as good as a rest and it's always cool to return to a much loved route with juxtaposed emotions; walking the old well known tracks with renewed vigor and wonder, as is walking them for the first time.

They're coming!

To paraphrase Country Joe 'Hold on they're coming, hold on they're very near', Ceps are becoming more bountiful with each passing rainstorm. Still quite sparse on the ground, with a bit of a hunt and a keen eye I managed a respectable haul of Ceps this morning. Most were young and firm, although I did notice that several of those picked from the wetter ditch/stream side areas had already become maggoty and few so much so that I discarded them. Still, you'll hear no grumbling from me, not with my sack filled so nicely.

Signs of distant days

It's clear from the detritus you find about, that the forest was once more intensively used or at least used in different ways than it is today. Crushed tin baths are a phenomena throughout the wooded parts of the forest. Whether signs of a long ago settled itinerant  population, the forest was once famed for it Gypsy communities, or evidence of one of the many hastily constructed and subsequently hastily abandoned temporary camps created amongst the forests shading stands in the run up to D Day during the latter part of the Second World War, is uncertain. Tin bath finds though are a very common find. Often other artifacts can be identified nearby, similarly they too share a cultural and period ambiguity making association with specific groups or periods near impossible.

Berry good times

At this time of year whilst we're out walking, faces fixed on the ground like hounds following a scent in our pursuit of mushrooms, it's worth taking a moment to look up and see what other of natures bounties surrounds us. This year has been a bumper year for berries in particular, a valuable resource group. There are traditional lores regarding the picking of many of our hedgerow/woodland fruits, one that is synonymous with autumnal berry collecting, and particularly with the three above, is that they should be picked after the first frosts. I've been thinking about this over the last few years and with the increasing effects of climate change I feel these lores are being rendered redundant. If you waited for the first frosts, the berries would be gone or have gone over on the plants. So I'd suggest pick now whilst they in abundance and if need be refrigerate or freeze over night to simulate a frost.  Good picking. 

Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna). Hawthorns are commonly seen throughout the forest, their red berries adding points of vibrant colour to the stands as the surrounding forest colour drains. Commonly found in archaeological deposits from the prehistoric period onwards, it's clear Haws have always been a valued food and medicinal resource. The berries are known as Haws and have a multitude of culinary uses from wine, savory and sweet jellies and jams.

Blackthorn, (Prunus spinosa). The Blackthorn has been used by humans for centuries, their fruits commonly known as Sloes, stones of which have been found on prehistoric settlement sites and notably in the stomach of Otzi, the frozen prehistoric body found in the Alps. The berries can be made into jam, used in fruit pies, to make wine, the traditional winter favourite Sloe gin (or vodka if so disposed) and preserved in vinegar. 

Dog Rose (Rosa Canina). The fruits of the dog rose are called Hips and have been used as a traditional folk medicine and food again since prehistoric times.  These fruits are brightest of reds and easily spotted in the fading forest. High in vitamin C rose hips have traditionally been used to make a rich rosehip syrup, though they can also be used to flavour herbal teas, make wines and sweet jellies.

Mushroom medlee

A nice haul of fungi this morning, some hedgehogs (Hydnum repandum), some ceps (Boletus edulis) and a chunk of cauliflower fungus (Sparassis crispa), all collected with a wild mushroom risotto in mind. The forest remains very dry though and what little rain is falling doesn't appear to be soaking in, more draining off into the rivers, with streams rising fast and falling just as quickly. We'll need to have far more rain to enjoy a good mushroom season this year.

Ancient Oak

This old fella I've named 'the old man of Pinnick Wood' sometimes referred to as 'the illustrated tree'. A gnarly ancient Oak, well into his third trimester (Oaks are said to have 300 years growing, 300 years living and 300 years declining), no longer producing leaf, in fact on the whole no longer having much bark or anything left on him at all. He's been like this for as long as I've known him, which is many years now; though still a commanding presence in the woods. His remaining trunk and boughs are covered in the most incredible patterning of swirls and mounds all conspiring to create a tripped out feast for the eyes. In a forest full of wonderful trees, this old fella is high on the list of notable ones.

Holly berries

This year Holly berries cluster around the twigs of the Holly trees in a way which suggests the trees more berry than leafs. They've quickly turned red, it wasn't that long ago that I remember them green. You can walk the forest paths year on year and miss so much of what's going on around you. I've never taken much notice of the holly berries before they've shone red amongst their dark green foliage. But this year, maybe due to their massive quantities, I became aware of the berries whilst they were still green and have watched them turn through yellow green to orange and now to the deepest of reds, with what feels like lightning speed. I wonder how many will still be about when it comes time to be making our Yule wreaths.

The Head

Canutian enterprises

Canutian enterprises are being undertaken along Hengistbury Head, some at the end of the Double Dykes, with some major works taking place at the long end groyne. I've called then Canutian enterprises because they've got about as much chance of holding back the sea as he did. Climate change is changing everything; more storms, stronger storms, rising sea levels all are conspiring to challenge what we've known, to challenge our status quo. That said, our status quo needs challenging, it's its continuation and our reluctance to change our ways and habits that have brought us to this place. But we have command of our futures, if only we realized it, we can change our ways, live a little humbler and avert the coming global catastrophe. Though, I fear we shall not and instead continue to try and hold back the inevitable as we're trying to hold back the sea.  

Ghost Stags

Maybe it's because they're white and they understand that they stick out somewhat amongst the greens and browns of the forest, I don't know, but the forests white Deer appear far more alert than their regularly coloured companions. These white Deer are often referred to as 'Judas' Deers as they will give away the presence of the herd; once spotted you'll always see more regularly coloured Deer around them, who you'd have otherwise passed unknowingly. They are beautiful to behold though and still rare enough to be a treat. White Fallow Deer are still relativity uncommon in the forest though they have become more frequent over the last few years or so. This one is still quite young by the look of him. They appear like ghosts of Deers past amongst the stands and possess a magical otherworldly quality.

Hedgehogs

Well I never! With the forest still on the dry side of arid, I'd not expected to come across these today and not in such quantities; though the woods were kind to me. Here we have the Hedgehog mushroom (Hydnum repandum). If we lived on the continent we'd see these beauties regularly for sale, prized for their taste and the fact there are no poisonous lookilikes. Hedgehogs are one of my particular favourites. An sub rounded, uneven cap, apricot, to salmon pink to light golden retriever in colour, unlike any other group Hydnums have spines not gills or pores, they grow often in linear groups, will frequently reappear in roughly the same locations year on year and are found in both coniferous and deciduous woodlands. I picked a good quantity, about 450g; some for a risotto, some for breakfast, some for drying and I can tell you there were many many more about. Get looking, they're so worth collecting. 

Acorns!

I read in the newspaper that acorns were in short supply this year, after a bumper crop last year.  You know, I've been so taken with what is about, bumper crops of berries and such, that I'd not noticed the bare Oaks.  Maybe, a reverse case of not seeing the wood for the trees. So I headed out into an area of the forest I knew had a high Oak population, and do you know what? The article was right. I walked for 4 miles through mature woodland and didn't see one acorn, not one acorn! I don't think we'll be seeing the pigs in the forest this year, pannage will be out of the question. It could just be part of the normal cycle of things, good years, bad years. I hope so.

Yew Berries

The Yew tree (taxus baccata) is easy to spot in the forest. A rick dark evergreen shrouded in mystery and folklore it has long had an association immortality and reincarnation, due possibly to it's longevity, commonly living up to 600 years and with some reaching up to 1000 years. Often found growing in graveyards, planted by Christians as a symbol of everlasting life, it had great spiritual importance long before their coming and is common in ancient lore. They are common, if not prolific, in some areas of the forest. A tree of the dead. All parts of the tree are toxic, except they say the red flesh of the berry, not the seed, just the red flesh; I've never tested that out though. Although I've thought about it more that once, the toxicity of the tree puts me off; I've seen it suggested that it's also alright to collect fungi, such as Chicken of the woods, which can grow on the Yews rich red trunk, I wouldn't eat that either. The leafs are the most toxic part of the tree, so much so that when dried their potency actually increases! All that said, when fruiting the dark green of the needles leafs and the bright red of the berries creates a striking mix in woodland where the other trees are fading as autumns progresses. Just remember the Yew has an association with the dead not just because of its longevity, but also it's toxicity and deserves our respect. 

Sweet Chestnut

The Sweet Chestnuts (Castanea sativa) are beginning to fall, a touch earlier than in recent years, though the ones I've seen are well developed and browned off.  They are not as you might think a native of our shores, and are believed to have been brought here by the Romans, though they've been her long enough to become naturalized. Spiky buggers when trying to open and collecting, they're well worth the effort as the nuts are delicious and versatile.  The nuts, once peeled and the pith (rather  astringent) removed, can be boiled, roasted, used as stuffing or paste, ground into flour and made into bread, cakes or used as a thickener; also like many other nuts an oil can be extracted from them. Another of natures autumn gifts.

Sundown

Autumns reign is now set and the evening skies reflect this.

Mabon

The Sun now slowly waning,

second harvest's at our door.

With nature so fecundate,

she gives us gifts galore.

Our Goddess stands before us

her bounty clear to see

The fruits and nuts of harvest

hang low from every tree

Take a moment in reflection,

on what has gone before.

Give thanks for all our blessings,

we couldn't ask for more.

Mabon, Autumn equinox, second harvest, the fruit harvest and nature has certainly been bountiful this year.  The berry bushes are flushed with coloured fruits, Hazel nuts and Beech nuts bow the boughs of their hosts and Crab Apple trees, common in the forest, covered in fruits to a degree not usually seen. Mabon is a time to give thanks, not just for the fruits of harvest time, but also for the fruits of our labours in other spheres of life. With luck the plans we hatched at Imbolc and Beltaine will have come or are coming to fruition. Mabon blessings to all.

Fly Agaric

Unless you're on a shamanic journey, going Viking or have a desire to visit the crazy world of Arthur Brown the Fly Agaric is certainly not one for the pot. This little beauty, one of the first I've seen this season, has a lovely pattern on it though.

Her chuch not made by hands

Many years ago, I first heard the Waterboys song 'A church not made by hands' and the line 'Her church not made by hands' particularly got me thinking and created an enduring image in my mind. I understood those lyrics or at least what those lyrics meant to me. In the same year, 1984, I'd been to the Stonehenge festival, a festival which was to have a profound effect on several aspects of my life. There I'd witnessed the Druids on the Summer Solstice morning as they processed to the stones and held their ritual, I was moved spiritually by those events, a door had been opened for me. I didn't know it but that morning had awoken me to the direction my spiritual path would lead; an epiphany if you like. I knew nothing of paganism at the time, though felt plenty. Hearing songs like 'A church not made by hands' re-enforced my feelings, giving me an early framework during the development of my an understanding of paganism, and for me, the Goddesses relationship with nature, and my deepening reverence for the natural world. The song and it's lyrics remain with me and I often find them replayed in my head when immersed in natures beauty, as I was today walking through Red Rise Shade following the course of the Rises winding Brook.  The Goddess I feel most connection with is Flidais, pronounced 'Flee-dish or Flee-dash' a Celtic Goddess, member of the Tuatha Dé Danann and akin to Diana and Artemis of classical pantheons, a Goddess and manifestation amongst other things of woodlands and of nature. I'm always aware of her in the wild places, in the beautiful places, when immersed in woodland, in all the seasonal changes and in the places less visited found off, as Peck put it, the roads less traveled. As with all nature, we humans have the potential to create great beauty; though our efforts will always pale when compared to diversity and beauty found in the simple structures and forms created by wider nature. Her church is indeed not made by hands.

Knowlton Mabon

As always the good folk of the Dorset Grove held a lovely open ritual at Knowlton Henge; this time for Mabon or Autumn Equinox. Beautiful people of good heart, a beautiful location on a site used for ritual activities for at least 5000 years and a genuinely positive and uplifting energy meant, as has become customary, a powerful ritual. Always inclusive, the order encourages visitors to the site who just happen to be there at the time to participate if they wish; many do and clearly appreciate the opportunity and enjoy the experience. I've been following a pagan path for 25 years and have attended plenty of rituals over those years, held by plenty of different groups and orders and would say that the Dorset Groves rituals are some of the fullest, most comprehensive, engaging and well rounded rituals I've been to.  Always a real pleasure. Thank you Dorset Grove folk.

The Lake

Not a lake as the name would suggest, but the name of the stream which runs through Hill Bottom towards Chapmans Pool through a deep thickly wooded ravine. The ravine is hard to access and most probably private land. Though I've walked the area many many times I've never followed the streams secret and hidden course. Slow and shallow flowing now, though during the winter months the water rushes through and around the twists and turns of this hidden place. I'm always excited by exploring new places. A good day.

Emmet Hill

The last few years have seen an increasing magnitude and frequency of land slides along the Purbeck coast and the slopes below Emmet Hill adheres to this trend.

Mollys Garden

The land below Houns Tout has no name on modern maps, although was once known as Mollys Garden. Who Molly was or why she had a garden here is lost to time; well to me anyway. The land is a rough and ready mix of landslide, rock fall and rough grasses with hollows filled with bramble and course shrubs along with any variety of spiky plant; as I found out trying to make it to the remains of the old carriage drive build below the cliff built by the Earl of Eldon to link Chapmans Pool to Encombe. All that can really be seen of this route is a entrance cutting on the Chapmans Pool side. I was hoping to find some evidence of its course, although I understand most evidence has been truncated by slides over the years. I think I'll have to try another angle next time. 

A the base of Molly Garden, just above the shore are the remains of a small, though sturdy building of stone. The walls of the building would have been about 0.4m or so thick, with a nicely cut stone slab floor, the interior would have been about 4m by ?m. The last figure of ?m is such as much of the building has been truncated at the shore end, so the shape of the building is uncertain; it could have been square, although it is more likely to have been rectangular as with several of the building around Chapmans pool.  A good spot with fine views, it's clearly used as a wild camp site or fishermans camp, with a well used fire pit and a good supply of gathered drift wood. 

Egmont Point

Although the day was for the most part warm and sunny, sea mists were frequently rolling in and out causing visibility to be periodically reduced, not to the point where you couldn't see the landmarks, but to where they were shrouded enough to deny you detailed definition. The sea at Egmont Point was calm, only gently lapping between the rocks which litter the foreshore, rocks which once crowned Houns Tout high above. Calm today in the sun but in stormy weather this stretch of coast can be treacherous and unforgiving.

A walk in the woods

A walk in the woods, a communion with nature and a way of escaping the overwhelming and all invasive noise and mental clutter of modern life.  A time to be alone with your thoughts or even better an opportunity for mindfulness and just being in the moment. Burly Old Enclosure has always held a special place in my heart, it's in one of a group of roams I walk with some frequency. One of the older Enclosures, 122 acres enclosed in 1700, and you can sense its longstanding. A mix of mainly mature straight Beech destined for the admiralty yards, Oak and where the under story allows or, where the canopy has been opened to the light by a falling leviathan, a range of shrub trees. When the canopy is full it's like being in a mighty natural cathedral, you look about and upwards with wonder. A special place. 

Autumn evening clouds

It's funny really, we watch sci-fi films which woo us with representations of strange, colourful and wonderful alien worlds. Though we tend to be blasé and ignore the wonders which our world has to offer and which play out all about us every day. Take the sky for example, every day a unique shifting canvas of incredible shapes, textures and, man, those fabulous colours; although how many people take notice? Take the time to stop and emerge yourself, I guarantee you'll be filled with awe and find yourself smiling. You've got to love nature.

Another Cep

Though there are some Ceps (Boletus edulis) about, I've not found them in any great quantities around my usual mushroom roams; of course that could just be me. Ones or twos appear the order of the day and although I'm tempted I tend not to pick them when they're so sparse on the ground. I don't know, it feels wrong. The ground appears to be the problem, it's dry, it's really dry, it feels and sounds like you're walking over rice crispies (other cereals are available) for the most part; nothing like the usual sodden walks you'd associate with mushroom season. Still, I maybe being a bit previous again as it's still early days and the weather wizards are forecasting some rain for next week. Ceptember may yet materialize.

Cauliflower fungus

I came across three clumps of cauliflower fungus (Sparassis crispa) in the same area of woodland, which was quite unusual as in the past I've found them to be isolated, usually only finding a single clump on a wide ranging walk.  It's always worth remembering where you've seen this fungus as, if treated with respect and not completely removed, it will return for several years (although maybe not every year).  Commonly found at the base of coniferous trees, usually Scots Pine, the cauliflower fungus is unmistakable and a tasty treat, although it does take some preparation as the numerous folds will contain woodland debris and insects it's well worth the effort. Medicinally, studies suggest that the cauliflower fungus may contain substances which aid the immune system, which is always good.

Dry Stone

There must a dry stone walling program in progress in Purbeck as the fresh clean lines of new walls can be seen all over. Here, like a puzzle or a Lego construction, all the pieces of stone have been sorted and lined up ready for use. It's really cool to see this old skill being reinvigorated, ensuring the craft of dry stone work continues for at least another generation. More of these 'real' skills and crafts need to be saved from extinction, it's them that make up much of the fabric of our rural cultural environment, dry stone walling, thatching, hedge laying, woodland management and so much more. I stood and looked for a while at who carefully each stone had been laid, how much thought and preparation had gone into the job and thought of the pride which was being taken in a job well done.

Tilly Whim cliffs

Even though the day was calm the sea threw up quite a swell below Tilly Whim caves.

Shaft

The hills above Swanage are like Swiss cheese, riddled with the shafts and tunnels of the long gone booming industry which grew the town, only the remnants of which remain and don't reflect the real extent of what went before. According to some local elders, this shaft on the Townsend Nature Reserve was renovated some years back, the entrance stabilized with some beautiful dry stone walling and although an ironwork gate was fitted for safety, you could still view the interior. Though shortly after some vandals broke through the gate and trashed the inside of the mine, which still contained machinery and equipment. After that the site was fenced off, fell back into neglect and at one point the shaft could no longer be seen for invasive plants and shrubs; again a couple of years ago the foliage was cleared, but as you can see, it encroaches again.  It's sad when history is vandalized and neglected, it's sad that communities lose contact with their pasts. Eventually, the shaft, it's place in local history and the folk that toiled there will be forgotten.

Millwall

Another new graffiti category for me... football graffiti.  Maybe it's my disdain for football culture, but unlike most of the other graffiti I find I just see this a tagging, like a dog pissing on a lamp post. You could rightly argue that all graffiti is tagging of a kind, marking time, events, loves, bands and so much more, the categories are endless. Maybe it's because Millwall supporters have a particular reputation for senseless violence with right wing associations, sporting firms (gangs) like the F-troop and Bushwackers. I don't know, but I reacted unusually negatively towards this graffiti; I suppose more than other graffiti I've found it has genuinely negative values associated with it.

Beef Steak fungus

On the older, more established, Oaks in the forest the Beef steaks (Fistulina hepatica) are out and about, I've seen a few developing over the last few day. Still young and fresh, they're just right for the cooking.  Though it should be noted that as they grow on oaks they can be bitter (more so with age) as they leech tannic acid from their host.  So before cooking it's advisable to boil Beef steak fungus in water, changing the water several times, to removed some of the bitterness before adding them to stews and casseroles or drying them for future use.

Miz-Maze

Tucked away, set in a magical Yew woodland grove, atop the chalk hills of the Hampshire Wiltshire border, Breamore Miz-maze is a wondrous place to visit and I imagine even more wonderful if you stumble upon it unawares. The current Miz-maze is said to date to the Medieval, though there is some speculation that this maze is on the site an older maze maybe stretching back into prehistory. It's certainly situated on a prominent hilltop and there's a Bronze Age barrow adjacent and many other prehistoric sites nearby. What ever the date, there is no doubt that this place has a lovely atmosphere and energy; some quiet time spent here is time well spent.

A berry good year

It's certainly looking like a very good year for hedgerow fruits; Elder, Haw, Sloe and Rose-hip bejewel our hedgerows and shrub land. I don't remember seeing such large numbers of Haws on the trees or such large Sloes, they too in great quantities. With such bumper crops available, jams, sauces and wines should be on the agenda of many a bush craft and wild food enthusiast. Some folklore suggests this is natures way of preparing her inhabitants for a harsh winter to come. Here's hoping. We could do with a good crisp winter.

Hollow trees

There is a group of mature Beech in Whitley Wood, an area of ancient semi natural woodland, which are all hollow. Strange I thought that all the trees in the group had gone the same way, it's common to find hollow trees, but no so so many together. I wonder what factors were at play here? Although their heart wood has long gone and light can be seen through the fissure in their trunks, they appear to be doing well, with thick healthy looking canopies. Nature's great isn't she.

Holly

The boughs of forest Hollies hang low with berries this year, I can't remember a season where the trees have had so many berries on them. Although still mainly green, they're starting to yellow and hints of orange can be made out on some as they continue their journey to the deep red berries with associate with the winter season and Yule.

Ceptember?

Easy now, steal yourself, it's only one Cep, one lovely Cep I agree but as we well know from previous mushroom seasons...one Cep does not make a risotto or even a breakfast. Though, I have to hope that this could be the start of Ceptember.

It’s the End

 Photo by Bridget McKenzie from NY Times article

An interesting article and well worth a read for those weary of standing against environmental or social wrongs and the endless onslaught of bad news in the media, and who are struggling to continue to remain positive whist things appear only to be getting worse.

It’s the End of the World as We Know It . . . and He Feels Fine

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/20/magazine/its-the-end-of-the-world-as-we-know-it-and-he-feels-fine.html?smid=fb-share&_r=0

Turning time

September's arrived and with it autumn. Already some of the trees are starting to show elements of the raft of colours which will soon cloth the forest trees. Rich colours, through faded greens and vivid oranges and yellows, to the deepest of russet browns. The forest is beautiful at any time, though autumn is particularly magical and as always I look forward to embracing it.