the morning after the night before

Woke up quite a few times and there will need to be some minor adjustments made to my bed before next time - mainly leveling - I kept sliding down towards my feet end and waking up half way along the tube.
Also need to make a better pillow for next time. the boys however faired much worse than me... they got pretty wet when they slept, but fair play to them lasting out til at least 9am in a soggy bed!
We moved the tarp from under the trees yesterday to the new tiered bank area which held off a lot of the rain but I had to cover the clay ground in bracken to a least be able to walk on it without heavy lumps of clay attaching themselves to your boots. The folded piles of chicken wire Ant spent all week pulling out of the Rhodies made a great springy base to put all our stuff on and keep it off the ground so not all bad.
Had a lovely fry up on the fire for breakfast which miraculously only took a few twigs and some snot rag to get going again after the torrential downpour, (a damned site better than mine and Helen's failed attempt yesterday!).
The boys left soon after lunch time and we weren't far behind. Our week off has been excellent fun, and very productive, but it's also been exhausting, painful at times and agonizing at others. I didn't even know I had muscles in my fingers, but every single one of them aches. I've eaten 4 batches of homemade flapjacks, (now named "power jacks"), more sausage sandwiches then I have eaten in the last year and even swallowed a bug of some kind - not to mention the multitude of germs I am now playing host to. I need this afternoon to make myself (and my finger nails) presentable to an audience of customers in Poland tomorrow. Bring on the bathtub.

First all-nighter!

Chucking it down with rain, so Ant spent the morning sewing canvas bed tubes and I went to the office to catch up after a week off and prepare for a couple of days working in Poland.
When the weather cleared and we got down to the wood, the camera trap had a lovely collection of deer shots on it from around 630am this morning.
The canvas tubes fit like a dream and after some faffing with wooden tent pegs and bungee cords we both had dry, off-ground beds, under tarp to sleep in. Which was a good job as the heavens opened again and very quickly the bank was a slippery mess. Paul turned up with the boys in the afternoon and quickly set about doing what boys do ... tipping buckets of muddy water down the bank to slide on! They were covered head to toe in mud whilst Paul was busy building them a shelter to sleep in - brave is not the word. By the time the den was finished and beds made it was time for dinner and dry clothes for the boys. The fire quickly turned into both a cooker and a laundry dryer and eventually the clouds cleared and the odd star was spotted before we turned in for the night.
Getting into a sleeping bag and then inside a waterproof bivvy bag proved a little tricky balanced on the canvas, but once in, it was truly toastie. Took a while to get to sleep, but thankfully no mosquitoes round the head which was my fear. No sooner had I got to sleep than the heavens opened again and the noise was incredible, not only sploshing from the trees onto my own tarp, but on the tarp in the clearing too. It was a good hour before it stopped and I was expecting to hear the boys get up due to den flooding, but heard nothing.

Friday

Yay - bought some navy waterproof material and some green fabric canvas from Baldwins this morning and hopefully have enough to make 4 tube beds.

Dug out the cooking area and formed a couple of tiers in the bank.
Not sure what to do about the contours of the ground - to step it or to slope it? will see what happens when it's wet. Shouldn't have to wait too long as forecast is not good for the weekend.
More Rhodie and dead wood clearance and I took a wander looking for new wildflowers. Found a few as well as this funnel web in the moss.
Ant started sewing at night but the machine we have was way too loud so we had to give up and go to bed.

the first rains

Today was another busy one and thanks Dad for naming yesterday's white frothy flower as Common Marsh Bedstraw (Galium palustre) no wonder I couldn't find it in my book - it's definitely not in there!
we dug out some of the bank today to provide a level (ish) cooking area - looking at Bob and Rita's patch yesterday, it became clear we really have got the bumpiest part of Blackfold wood - we think there could be flat ground enough for maybe four 2-man tents around the camp area, but anymore than that and it's shovel and spade time for sure.
The camera caught a lovely deer checking out my clay seating just before we arrived, as well as a squirrel on the bank about six this morning.
We alternated digging and dead wood clearance and didn't manage to find anything suitable in canvas to finish our A frame beds yet, but will keep looking. The weather doesn't look too good for this weekend anyway, so not sure if it's too much of a problem. Still doing enough muddy work and gaining enough injuries each day to warrant a long soak in a Dettol-spiked bath when we get home.

By six o'clock the heavens opened and the noise was incredible - the tarp quickly sagged with water and I was desperate to go check out the newly cleared section of stream, but had stupidly left my mac in the boot of the car. So we waited it out and cleared away before trekking out in a light drizzle.

Wednesday

On arrival, we saw our new neighbours were in and so we stopped to introduce ourselves to beekeeper Bob and his wife Rita. Lovely couple, retired and "pleased as punch" with their new purchase. Bob followed us down to our clearing for a nose about and stayed for a couple of cups of tea and a good natter about all sorts. What a fantastic start to the day - sun shining for the fourth day in a row too.

We cracked on with more deadwood and Rhodie clearance - the two piles are getting quite large now, but the woodland floor is finally receiving dappled shade and feels as if it's opening up a bit more - instead of the gloomy deep shade and the sense of being slowly choked in rampant non-natives it looks marginally lighter, airy and optimistic.
Ant with his new bedding and me with my determination to sleep over this week at least once, we made a start on our "A" frame beds this afternoon. Looking promising but still need the "mattress" parts to be able to sleep there. After pondering re-using the chicken wire to form a tube between the two horizontal poles (like a stretcher) we decided the risk of tearing our slightly inflatable sleeping mats was too great and so we are going to look at getting some waterproof canvas instead.

I also hacked another new pathway through the east side from Rais down to the log bog. There is still one section which is a bit tricky and ideally requires another bridge, but I will tackle that tomorrow.

The bracken on the top of the wayleave is already chest high and I spotted another new wildlfower today (pictured) which I cannot find in my book... it was in a boggy area, and so probably not common enough to be in my Collins guide so I now have an evening of trawling photos on the internet; It was right next door to the ragged robin which I love.

clearance and camp bedding

We went to town today and bought camp bedding for the captain as he suddenly realised he had absolutely nothing other than the double sleeping bag we use in the van and a single bivvy which the sleeping bag definitely will not fit into. We also managed to pick up some small cool bags for our packed lunches (fed up of carrying the massive cool box in and out) and a tick remover (nice).
I started clearance in the eastern wood and spent most of the afternoon with secateurs clearing the rhodies whilst Ant brought down the precariously balanced dead trees and all the dead wood dangling on other branches in the eastern wood as well as clearing more of the mangled chicken wire fencing that was presumably designed to pen the pheasants. Rhodies growing through most of it and much of it buried... a pig of a job.

Monday

We've erected a temporary square tent (which is actually a garden swing cover) to keep some things dry in the wood, before clearing the stream some more under toad bridge, and putting in a couple of steps down to it to make the approach slightly safer.
Hacked a path from toad bridge, north-east to the bracken area to provide a circular (albeit short) walk in the wood.

Sunday

Tracey and I set to work clearing out the stream in the wayleave and got covered in mud, clay, scratches, bruises and thankfully smiles. It was back-breaking work and required a fair few stops since we were working yards from the raging inferno the boys were feeding with all the remaining brash and greenery. Such an epic bonfire - Flee even burnt a hole in his hat and I came close to passing out but it certainly did the trick - first batch of Rhodies destroyed!
We had cleared so much of the stream it now required a bridge and since we had uncovered a couple of toads in the mud, we of course named it Toad Bridge - no doubt our first of many bridges.
The boys took out a dodgey leaning tree or two and Mum popped up to deliver a chainsaw which was fantastic, it's amazing how many people we know have them or at least access to them that we didn't expect.
We want to set up some kind of sheltered "cooking area" and so we needed to put in some upright posts to hold the tarp initially so we can stay dry whilst we brew up / cook etc. Holes were dug, logs were dropped it and the clay soil compacted back down around them. They are a little tall at the moment, but will be chopped off when we see how tall they need to be. Another back-breaking job that Flee made look easy.

start of a week off to spend in the wood...

The Captain dragged all the brash on the southern valley and stacked it along the southern boundary to form a row of "council houses" for the birds which you can just see along the top of the photo. I put in a couple of new steps into the bank by what will be the cooking area and then repaired the first set of steps we built (knowing what we know now!) and filled in the cracks in the clay seat which inevitably appear when it dries and shrinks.
Whilst clearing the area we came across this perch on a fallen-but-only-partially-dead tree which crosses the stream... judging by the low height from the ground and the collection of feathers, we guess it to be the favourite spot for a Sparrowhawk to take its prey at feeding time. So we set up the camera trap nearby to see if we catch anything.

Seat still not dried out

Second time an accident had closed the road – this time a motorbike - and so the gang struggled to actually get into Rais. But finally after 90 mins of hanging around the entrance they drove in and were rewarded with the sight of 3 deer in the meadow - one of them pure black or Melanistic as I later learned - never seen that before.

We cut another storm damaged tree down and had mammoth picnic whilst the kids explored the wood for the first time. 

We used the chopped tree to make a temporary "Log Bog" (big hole and sofa-like support seating) before sausages sandwiches and excited chat. Roll on the summer!

Getting ready for the gangs first visit

Finished the main set of steps in and thank god as it was roasting hot. They look awesome, we are both ridiculously proud of them.... and they work!

The rain had collected in a pool at the base of the clogged stream as it approaches "base camp" and so I started digging out the sticks and leaves and crap in order to give it more space for water should it rain again. But in digging, I discovered yet more clay, so with the hole now half full of water, I carried on digging and got absolutely covered in the stuff - slopping it out onto the side of the hole which was rapidly turning into a mini-pond. I then used the clay to make a seat in the bank opposite which I hope won't crack too much when it dries, but who knows. I left it to dry out for a few hours and come the afternoon it was still nowhere near dry, but fairly firm and malleable at least... so I made a bum print in it in the hope it would make for a more comfy seat during prolonged periods of wine-guzzling round the campfire. The captain of course then came and did his, and to my horror I discovered that my arse is actually a good deal larger than his... git. I got cleaned up in the marginally flowing stream and decided to enlarge the arse further with some bacon and prawn kebabs. Followed by my second attempt at flapjacks which were infinitely better than the first.

Sadly nothing on the camera trap except 67 pictures of exactly the same empty scene with a Rhody leaf pulling a variety of different poses in the top left hand corner of each shot - D'oh!

quick dash between the rain storms at lunchtime

Managed to strap the camera in to try and see what's using the badger sett at the moment. I'm convinced something is sheltering inside, but suspect it's probably only foxes... not enough excavated soil/bedding to be badgers and there are no identifiable paw prints to speak of. Will dash back at lunchtime tomorrow if I get a chance.

Scorchio Sunday

Despite the cuts, bites and scratches of yesterday still a bit raw and the aches and pains just faintly starting to creep in, I was up and baking flapjacks at 7am ready for the day ahead and what a day it was.

Almost safe access in!

We took the car (on account of snapping the accelerator arm on the campervan on the motorway on the way home last night) and parked easily on the bracken-covered verge just off the track; no sinking, so must be drying out. We loaded up with the heavy duty sledge hammer, water and cool box and set off along our newly created path…. Both grinning J - I don’t really know what we expected.. .that it had somehow disappeared overnight? But it still looked pretty obvious as a path – we still have an area at the start to clear, but pretty much there now (for one half of the northern boundary at least).

Anyway the steps were looking just as fine as yesterday and the clearing was already bathed in sunshine (and hot). We moved the fire slightly further out of the path and set to work once again on getting the kettle going.  A surprise call from my brother halted work for a bit in the morning whilst I wandered up to the road to guide them in for a nose about, and then an hour later a surprise visit from my Dad on his motorbike!  So impressed with everyone’s interest – soon we will be able to accommodate people and cars for proper celebrations.

The boss got started on the access steps to get down into the clearing and I made a log wall jigsaw in the camp area to give Bruce and Sheila (our woodmice) some better cover back and a load of nooks and crannies to hide in. We did see them again today crossing the log stumps, so thankfully yesterday’s activities and fire smoke did not scare them off. Although the smoke certainly killed my own lungs. I steered well clear today and managed to get through the day with only one minor additional injury.