Lost in the Woods; Weekly Walk #24 Without A Map

Don’t you just love moving house. Everything is in boxes, you can’t find pots to cook with, and all of your carefully organised maps have vanished. This week, I wasn’t going to let that stop me. I set out blind to Bentley Wood, an area I knew relatively well but had yet to find a circular walk of, and using crude maps and what little sense of direction I had, attempted to get back to my car in one piece…

I switched down to first gear as I trundled the uneven, pot-hole ridden woodland track to the car-park, which even at 8.30am was starting to get full. I took the above photo for the blog, and set-off down a long track through the heart of the woods. I’ve seen lots of animals here before, including a heard of deer, and a swooping owl, but today I saw birds and butterflies.

I wasn’t sure if I was still on the main track, as I knew from maps that I’d seen before that it should continue straight, yet the woods were clearly behind me as I strode along a field edge into a second area of woodland. I was about to turn around, when I found a crude map with a red arrow to tell me where I was, and using the photo I’d taken earlier, was able to cross-check and confirm where I was.

I decided to turn down a smaller track and followed it past a few horse riders. I wanted to stay aware of where I was so I could turn around if need be, but when I reached the end of the track, I turned left into thick woodland and tried to navigate myself back around in a loop to where I’d come from. The crude map wasn’t much help as I kept coming across paths that weren’t shown, and each time I past one I had to remember the route back. “Straight over cross-roads, left at the big tree, follow it round to the main track.” It was a little scary, yet had my adrenaline going; a true adventure!

I saw a clearing through thick trees, and ventured off the path to have a look. I was overlooking the field I’d passed earlier, and knew that if I kept going left I would eventually find the path. I set-off, and after a few moments of wondering if I could even remember the route if I had to turn around, I was back at a familiar bench with a dried banana skin (a unique thing to help me remember!).

Most people would be content with having completed a small circuit and be heading back on the path that they knew for sure led back to their car, but not me. I came across a path on the left that my crude map (which I was checking on my camera) indicated would, after a few twists and turns, lead me back. I followed it into true woodland, where nothing but a small slip of light peeked through the still leaves. I hit a road, so turned around and found the footpath I was looking for; a narrow path through thicker woods. I knelt down to get some shots of the moss and a few close-ups, confident I was heading the right way.

Until my straight path became a cross-roads, and I had to guess, taking a path that hit one of the main tracks sooner than I would’ve imagined. I figured I must have gone wrong, and had no way of telling for sure which part of the woods I was in. I made a guess and followed a route, which luckily led me back to an area I recognised, but I could just have easily have taken the wrong path

I took a  small track into Geoff’s Copse and found a bench with a stone monument set behind it in a clearing of grass, both dedicated to Geoff Parfitt, a forester and countryman.  It was quite magical, with butterflies dotted around it; if a sword had been poking out of it I would’ve have accepted I was in a fairy-tale. I continued, stopping to take a few photos of the butterflies, when I saw the edge of a car-park and hoped it was where I had parked.

When I caught sight of my car, I realised what a different walk this had been. Of course, it’s a good idea to have a map and know your route, especially when walking on your own, but perhaps in small, enclosed spaces, it’s okay to rely on more basic maps and crude navigation. It certainly adds to the fun, allowing you to make random discoveries, which is very satisfying when you reach the end.

Bentley Wood is located between the villages of Pitton and Farley, Wiltshire, with the car park I used today off Scout's Lane, 51.060993, -1.633190.

You can read more about upcoming events in Bentley Wood on the Pitton and Farley website.

Five Adventures from the Last (and next) Few Weeks!

I didn't write last week or even take a walk (which is killing me) but I've been on a whirlwind of adventures big and small, so I thought I'd blog about them and prove I've not just been avoiding my desk; honest.

1. I Went to a Wedding.

I had the role of videographer at my uncles wedding on Sunday, allowing me to play around with pans and zooms as I captured the day on an old school mini-dv camera and cheap tripod. I really need to upgrade my kit (and get some decent editing software - any suggestions?) but I had great fun.

 

We had a barn dance in the evening, which was great, yet exhausting in the heatwave.

It was a lovely venue with crazy golf and bowling for the guests, overlooking a field of cows; a real country wedding!

2. I Made Some Mean Pad Thai.

I love to cook, and having debated a series of cooking posts in the past, I thought I'd finally seize the moment. This recipe, from the Asda magazine, wasn't as sweet as other Pad Thai recipes I've tried, but it was really simple and tasty, and using Quorn chicken pieces, was perfect for vegetarians too.

I loved playing with depth of field in this shot of lime zest, though it's quite difficult to cook and document at the same time.

3. I Graduated!

It was great to see my friends and tutors from the MA Film Screenwriting course at the Lowry Theatre in Salford Quays. It was strangely relaxed compared to my first degree ceremony in Aberystwyth, with a student brass-band performing a variety of film theme tunes with a random Mexican bandit and Inspector Clueseo. I clapped and cheered and really enjoyed it, despite my sweaty palms as I went on stage to shake the Chancellors hand and receive my paper scroll. 

4. I Took Some Pictures.

I recently found inspiration to take better photos, so in a trial run before my next walk, I played with the aperture setting on my camera with some weeds in the garden.

5. And, I'm Going to Slovenia!

I'm not sure what I'm more excited about; blogging about a real adventure in another country, seeing another fellow graduate and my friend's beautiful country, or having time off to hike, sight-see, and relax. Possibly all three in equal measure. I shall see if I can get on-line and post some pictures and awesome road-trip tales, or else I'll have a nice Slovenia guide post written when I get back.

Look out for more of my adventures in August, including the Bristol Balloon Fiesta and a host of walks.

A New Forest Trek With Friends; Weekly Walk #23

I’d only just met my friends Ewa and Maud, and couldn’t think of a better way for us to get to know each other than to take in a New Forest walk. I drove us about twenty minutes through Downton to the east side of Fritham for some good conversation, great pictures, and tasty lunch at the Royal Oak. It was a lovely sunny day as I trundled over Parisian like cobbles and cafés to our bustling market square meeting point, where I bought some juicy cherries for us to enjoy on the road.

It didn’t take long to reach the open New Forest plains, where we were held up by cattle waltzing the road. Some great pictures can be seen on Ewa's blog. I parked at Janesmoor Pond, which looked like something from the African plains, crowded with cattle and ponies taking a drink in the summer sun. By a stroke of luck, there was a cycle race on that day, giving Ewa a chance to get coffee before I led the three of us into King’s Garn Gutter Inclosure.

We followed the winding cycle path into a clearing, where we stopped to take some photos, before walking a path between woodland. It led us back towards the car-park, making it feel a bit of a pointless circuit, but it was nice to explore the woods nether-the-less.

We took a path to the right and followed it back up towards the main road, where we crossed over and walked the lane into Fritham.

Fritham is a small village in the middle of a vast expanse of open heathland and forest, and features a fantastic little pub called the Royal Oak. I wasn’t planning on drinking any beer, until I noticed at least five barrels on gravity. I enjoyed a nice pint of Bowman beer in a shaded part of the garden, and some duck with apple sauce, salad and tasty bread. It was healthy, but filling; a nice change to usual pub food, although I did finish off with a towering rum raisin and berry ice-cream!

We continued along a footpath past houses, before reaching a footbridge and a selection of paths. I had to get my navigating hat on, as the New Forest isn’t like most traditional walks, across designated footpaths, but an amalgamation of little tracks. I whipped out the compass, but mostly relied on the map to lead us through the woods. A group of students on Duke of Edinburgh also seemed to be having trouble, but both our groups emerged at the same time.

The final stretch led us across an open plain towards the car-park, which made for a nice photo stop. Summer had most definitely arrived, with people basking in the sun and horses hovering by people’s cars, either in search of food or trying to cool off.

 

It was nice to have spent this lovely walk with such lovely people, and I would recommend best friends and new friends a-like to take in a walk together. It’s a great way to keep conversation going, and finds like the Royal Oak always seem to add to the fun.