Sunrise 04:39 (BST) Sunset 21:14 (BST) sunny intervals 23°C 16°C Northerly Wind (6 mph) 1018 Humidity 72

The woods were quiet. Exceptionally so and I wondered why. Of course, the Rooks chicks had fledged. Ah…peace! I did some filming and had a light lunch. The vegetation is now so high that it’s quite impossible to see anything of the wildlife in the wood. So, I decided to wander around the edges of the wood and into the surrounding fields.

I was delighted to find some wild Iris on the waste ground. I explored a nearby ditch and found some newts popping up to the surface for air. It looked as though they were Common newts, but this area does have some of the rarer Great crested variety. It was difficult to tell as the water was a little murky.

Sitting for some time by the ditch, I also noticed my first sightings of this years Damsel and Dragonflies. I remember seeing the same species of Broad bodied chaser with the males bright blue body. The damselfly was the Common blue (I think).

Moving further into the meadowland I was delighted to see some Bee orchids. I’d identified the leaves earlier in the spring and was pleased to see that I wasn’t too far out location wise. I counted about a hundred different plants. Although not rare, they are quite localised and it might be years before they flower in exactly the same location. The flower is a mimic of a female bee. The male bee tries to mate with the flower and therefore takes the pollen away and tries again with another bee orchid, thus pollinating that flower.

The wind dropped and the sun came out as evening approached. I clambered back into the van and was heading toward the badger sett. It was getting dusk when I was suddenly overtaken by a Barn owl flying low and only a few feet away. Didn’t he know there was a speed limit along this road? I noticed he was carrying a small rodent. Guessing that he must be returning to the nest with a meal I desperately tried to follow. Knowing there was some disused buildings up ahead, I guessed that this was where he was heading. It must have been an interesting sight. Van alba follows Tyto alba!

I came to halt by the disused buildings only to see, to my disappointment, the owl veer off toward another field. Just as I was about to carry on, he made a sudden right turn and started the final approach path directly toward the building I’d parked in front of. A soft landing at the top of the building, a dart inside to drop off the meal, a quick turnaround and he was off again, this time alighting on top of a building about 40 yards away.

By this time I was out of the van with the camera but it was too far for a decent shot. Although he appeared to be staring at me, he must have considered me no threat as he took off, flying away from me to carry on hunting for his hungry brood. I quickly moved in closer and a few minutes later he returned, perched on a nearby post complete with new catch and after a short pause (and what looked like a quick nibble as well) he flew into the nest once again.

The nest is only a few minutes away down the road, so I think this will be a regular visiting spot for me.

I finished the evening with some badger watching. I was a little late due to the Barn owl sighting and placed myself this time at the front of the sett. After about an hour I … fell asleep. The badgers could have been having a party and I wouldn’t have known about it. At midnight I went home.

Despite the lack of badger sightings (yet again) it was a great day for wildlife.

I probably won’t be doing a mid week post next week as I’ll be migrating data to my new laptop. Gone will be the burning sensations and indentations of a hot and weighty Pentium 4 laptop on my legs and the noise of the laptop fan!

See you next weekend.

Thanks for the visit,

Pablo.

Sunny intervals. Max Temp: 19°C (66°F), Min Temp: 13°C (55°F), Wind Direction: SW, Wind Speed: 10mph, Pressure: 1006mb, Humidity: 59% low, Sunrise: 04:38 BST, Sunset: 21:19 BST

Eager to get out after torrential rain prohibited an overnighter, I was up with the proverbial larks this morning. I packed up the day sack and on the spur of the moment, reached for the pocket cooker to cook breakfast on. I also took the small frying pan from the civilian trangia unit to make things easier.

The woods were very damp and the humidity seemed high as I set up the hammock to sit on. I had trouble selecting enough dry wood to start off the cooker. Little did I know this was the start of my problems. I seemingly forgot everything I’d learnt about properly preparing a fire, thinking that the pocket cooker was somehow easier to light and maintain.

I selected some bark which was still damp and tried to light some maya stick shavings with the firesteel. No luck here. After a good 5 minutes, the hungry side of my brain started to send signals to my hand telling it to reach for the Primus lighter. The bushcraft side of the brain told me to rest, think, find another solution and persevere. I shaved some finer slivers of maya stick and after a few more strikes the shavings at last caught. I gingerly fed the small flame into the burner and…it went out. I started over again, this time reorganising the wood in the burner. This time I was in business and bacon and egg was on the way.

After eagerly scoffing the breakfast, I tried to stoke the fire for a brew. I’m not completely to blame here and I felt that the burner was hard work. The trouble is that when you have something on top of the cooker, you can’t tell how well the fire’s burning or not as the case may be. Needless to say that on a couple of occasions, it petered out. To speed up the boiling process, I put the frying pan on top of the Crusader cup. Not the brightest thing to do as the bottom was covered with fire residue, which dropped into the cup. The was turning into a right royal mess up! At least I’d had my breakfast. The pocket cooker was slowly dropping down the league table of the Premiership Cooker League.

After what seemed a lifetime making breakfast, I fell back exhausted into the hammock. The damp of the woods and lack of sunlight soon made things a little chilly and I was soon seeking the more open, sunlit north side of the wood. I was soon engrossed in photographing and trying to identify some new plants emerging from the ground. I found another Bee orchid, Perforate St John’s wort, Biting stone crop, Black medick (this was a first for me), Ox-eye daisies and Self-heal. I also managed to get a shot of a Cinnabar moth.

I wandered home about 4 o’clock to a surprise Father’s Day welcome. I’d completely forgotten and the clan had gathered in my honour, complete with huge bar of chocolate, and a bottle of brandy. Best of all was the Sunday roast, which made the breakfast fiasco a distant memory.

By the way, I’ve posted a short video of the Barn owl here.

See you later.

Pablo.

Sunny intervals with outbursts of rain. Max Temp: 20°C (68°F), Min Temp: 12°C (53°F), Wind Direction: SSW, Wind Speed: 22mph, Visibility: good, Pressure: 1002mb, Humidity: 68%, Pollution: low, Sunrise: 04:42BST, Sunset: 21:21BST

I was working away last week. How I hate being away from home and the woods! I couldn’t wait to get back. Despite the rain, I was up and running in the woods for a few hours yesterday and today.

I’ve really been getting into wildflowers lately. A couple of weeks ago I found a scarce Sulphur clover in the area. Big pats on the back from Essex wildlife trust and even English nature have been informed. Still all subject to confirmation of course. Unfortunately there was only one single plant in the area and I ate it! ONLY JOKING! Our local wildlife group have cut away the area hoping more will grow.

Spurred on by this success, I decided to scour the local area, make a list of plants and try and see what value they are to the Bushcrafter. I’m actually trying to do another video (my first ‘talkie’-how I hate the sound of my voice) based on wildflower use around my area and this should be ready soon.

While doing a bit of research I came across this theory. You might have heard it, but I certainly haven’t until now. It’s called the Doctrine of Signatures. It goes something like this (in simple terms):

“…every plant bears an outward sign that of its value to mankind…”

It’s difficult to tell where this originates from as there is conflicting information. It possibly stems from the ancient Chinese who were great herbalists but there are also references to Native Americans. In the Christian version, it’s said the Creator had so set his mark upon Creation. In Europe the greatest exponent was a bloke who kindly changed his name from Philippus Theophrastus Aureolus Bombastus von Hohenheim to Paracelsus.

I’ve been quite fascinated with this and set out to look at a couple of plants on today’s excursion (despite the rain). St John’s wort and Selfheal, both of which are abundant just outside of my woods at the moment, were the subject of my study.

The top petal of the Selfheal from side on looks similar to the shape of a bill hook, which of course was, and still is, popular in England for trimming hedgerows and making wooden fences. This was the main cause of wounds in the medieval farming community and hence the plant gained a reputation as the healer of wounds.

Perforate St John’s-wort on the other hand bears no resemblance to any instrument, tool or part of the body; however the medieval herbalists noted that the leaves had tiny perforations in the leaves. These perforations were said to be puncture wounds caused in battle, thus they were used to cure wounds of the Knights of St. John of Jerusalem in the Crusades.

Do they work in a medicinal sense? Well, Selfheal’s Latin name is Prunella vulagaris; prunella eminating from the German, Brunella, which means sore throat and an infusion is sometimes made into a gargle or mouthwash for laryngytis. A lot of proprietary drugs are made from St John’s-wort. Long-term use relieves depression and migraine (sounds dodgy!) and as lint, the plant is indeed often used to heal cuts and bruises (source: Launert’s Edible and Medicinal plants of Britain and Northen Europe). So there we have it. One pretty accurate, and one not so far off. Good old Paracelsus.

For the record, other flowers in the area I noted were:
Tufted vetch, Thistle, Teasel, White clover, Tormentil, Cinqfoil, Scarlet pimpernel, Bee orchid, Selfheal, Perforate St John’s-wort, White and Red Campion, Common comfrey, Arum lily (green berries at the moment), Ragwort (with Cinnabar moth caterpillars feeding voraciously), Cramp-ball fungus, Unknown umbellifers, Restharrow and even some ripe blackberries.

Thanks for the visit and see you next time.

Pablo.

 

Although there has been quite a bit of rain, there wasn’t enough to keep “the swamp” full and many of the shallower puddles had dried out. There’s usually a bit of dragonfly activity, but even they seemed to be elsewhere.

It was very difficult to capture on camera and the best I could do was the pic below. If you look closely to the right and above the diamond caused by the sun on the lens, you might be able to see what looks like a swirling orb type shape.

 I wandered out of the woods with spirits a little low, feeling disappointed at the lack of activity.

This morning, my mate Paul W and I went for a wander in Lowt’s wood. The air was humid and we were soon sweating in an attempt to battle through the overgrown footpath. I can’t believe that so few people walk along the long public footpath and into the wonderful woods.

On the walk in we caught a fleeting glimpse of a fox and tracked it back to its earth a few yards away on a bankside and caught sight of some fallow deer at a distance. They had already spotted us and we could only get a blurred long range shot. A shame we couln’t get closer for at least two had magnificent antlers.

We made it to the clearing at the top and settled down for a coffee. Only the occasional aircraft spoilt the silence and we chatted sparingly – as old friends do.

On the way back, we stopped to listen to the wheat growing. Well it seemed like it. The phenomenon, a popping sound almost like popcorn, is probably caused by the seed expanding in the sudden warmth of the sun.

Pablo.

 

I could only manage a few hours in the woods this weekend. I decided on the spur of the moment to have a go at making a fork. If you’ve ever tried this you’ll know that it’s not easy. I gouged away carefully at the gap between the prongs, but still managed to split the wood slightly. I’ll probably also have to harden the ends of the prongs over a fire or they’ll break too easily. Although it doesn’t look too bad, I don’t think it will last very long under constant use. I think I need more practice!

 

I spent the rest of the time looking at the plants growing on some waste ground. This is a good time to identify these plants as there’s a lot in bloom.

Cinnibar Moth catapillar on Ragwort – Ragwort is poisoness to most mammals

[edit] Burnet moth (possibly six-pot Burnet) on Common centaury

Tall melilot

Great willowherb

Birds-foot trefoil

Scarlet pimpernel

Vetch

Field bindweed

Cinqfoil

Common mallow

Small tortoishell on thistle

Self-heal

Thanks for the visit.

Pablo.

This is the conversation that took place between Pablo and his team of eminent physicians at the hospital last Monday.

Dr – So, it’s been 4 weeks now in a cast.

Pablo – It’s been 6 weeks.

Dr – Oh, right. Let me see (consults notes). Ah, yes – 6 weeks. So we’re going to put on another cast after repositioning the foot.

Pablo – No, we’re taking off the cast and we’re putting a heel raise in my shoe.

Dr – Well, it’s a bit soon.

Pablo – I was told 2 weeks ago by the plaster technician to bring my other shoe and a heel raise.

Dr – It seems there’s been a mix up on the dates.

Pablo – Really?

Dr – Yes.

Pablo – Perhaps that accounts for me attending here in week two and being told I need not have come.

Dr – Well, it does appear that there’s been a mix up on the dates.

Pablo – I would suggest you never work in the Cardiology department.

No response.

[Pablo then hobbles to see the plaster technician]

PT – OK, we’re leaving this cast on for another two weeks.

Pablo – No, we’re taking this cast off and repositioning the foot to the normal position and putting on a new cast.

PT – Oh… right. I’d better check with the doctor.

Pablo – Yes. You’d better check with the doctor.

[Plaster technician returns after 5 minutes]

PT – Right. We’re taking this cast off and repositioning the foot to the normal position and putting on a new cast.

Pablo – Excellent. I thought you might. By the way, what shall I do with the heel raise you told me to bring last time.

PT – Well, it does seem you’ve had a bit of bad luck with the dates.

Pablo – Yes. Bad luck really does follow me around in this hospital. I’m not too sure why.

PT – There we go. All done. See you in two weeks with the heel raise.

Pablo – Are you sure?

Despite yet another set back and a couple of day’s pain after repositioning the foot, I took advantage of today’s fine weather and walked further than I have in the last 7 weeks – but of course, keeping to the solid paths of the Forestry Commission’s Broaks Wood.

Bill (who’s staying with us for a while) and Mrs P. had great fun galloping ahead then doubling back while I advanced slowly to catch them up. I really must get Billy a camo jacket.

My new “tracking shoe” helped me keep my foot level to the ground and stopped the cast getting wet and muddy. Hiking socks kept the cold air off my delicate toes.

It felt great walking some distance even if I did have to rely heavily on my walking stick – the crutches were thankfully discarded on this occasion. There appeared to be no painful after effects from the exercise.

On this day of the winter solstice I took in the quiet, sleeping woods and looked forward to the time when they would awake. With any luck, I’d be there when they did.

Thanks for the visit.

Pablo.

For the last 8 days I’ve been in the beautiful country of Portugal. Although I wasn’t as mobile as I wished, I did manage to see quite a bit of the countryside by going on a standard day’s jeep and boat tour with a guide.

The guide, Jose (they pronounce the “J’s” in Portugal) was the Portuguese version of Bill Oddy, but much more entertaining. He also had an excellent knowledge of the wild plants and what you could do with them.

The first area we visited was a natural salt marsh where hundreds of migrating birds can be seen at the right time of year. We spotted Great flamingoes feeding in the shallows.

Storks took every opportunity to occupy any available chimney or tall structure. Being protected, it was odd to see unused pylons and chimneys in the middle of nowhere with just a nest perched on top.

More common birds seen were hundreds of Goldfinches, Swallows and Azure-winged Magpies (above) which is endemic to the Iberian peninsula. I had a fleeting glimpse of a Hoopoe but couldn’t get a picture.

As you can imagine the further we got inland, the more plants were evident. Rural produce consisted of the citrus fruits, figs, olives, almonds, grapes and the carob bean. ..

… which are grown and farmed on the hills. The dried seed pods taste like chocolate and are used as a sweetener and chocolate substitute. They actually taste delicious when dried.

At this time of year you’ll find these white rock roses everywhere.

Cork trees can be hundreds of years old and the bark is harvested only every 30 – 40 years.

Don’t you just hate it when people get hold of your camera!

Marsh Frogs (Rana ridibunda) were very vocal at this time of year. You can get them in the UK but only in Kent and Sussex.

The trip finished on a boat travelling south along the River Guadiana, which splits Portugal (on the right) and Spain (on the left).

The Portuguese boat captain allegedly loves to wind up the Spanish by meandering close to the Spanish side. I didn’t see anyone protest.

We scoffed down quite a few of these freshly caught and barbequed sardines.

If you ever come across this wine – don’t drink it! It tastes evil… until the 6th glass!

Hope you’re having a good Easter break.

Pablo.

Easter Monday

Just when I thought it couldn’t get any worse, the lens of my glasses came away from the frame. I’d forgotten my hearing aids and my Aircast was getting rapidly clogged up with mud. I shook my head and pondered on my outdoor situation over the last few months. I hadn’t started the new year too well and it was hardly a success a story. I started to feel sorry for myself. This was rather unlike me. The leather working projects had gone well but I felt I just needed a boost to get motivated again.

I looked about for something to fix my specs. A nettle fibre or strand of paracord would do it but I opted for some fishing line I carry in my possible’s pouch. It been in there for years and I’ve never used it until now. Just goes to show you.

I’d brought along my home made possible’s pouch and was pleased with the extra space it provided. I designed it not only to hold normal possible’s stuff but other bits I come across.

I was able to fit in this jaw bone. I’m pretty sure it’s from a fox.

With the specs fixed I continued my trip spotting early spring flowers like this Cuckoo flower or Lady’s smock (young leaves are tasty)

… Ground Ivy

… Celandine

… Primrose (leaves and petals are tasty)

During lunch I spotted 3 fallow does browsing along the hedgerow. They were about 30 yards away and the closest I’d got to them this year. The recent cull had made them more alert so this was a good sighting. Things were beginning to look up…

…and, in fact, on looking up, I saw this chap.. a male Greater-spotted woodpecker.

Suddenly it was all happening for me and I felt as though I was getting back on form. No sooner had I had that thought when I saw a movement to my front and to the left.

It was a fox about 50 yards away. I put the camera on video mode and called him in with a squeak. To my delight, he turned towards me and came trotting up stopping about 6 or 7 yards away and stared straight at me. I was relaxed and zoned-in enough not to appear as a threat. He then turned to the left and was probably going to circle where he thought the squeak originated but my own movement as I turned the camera spooked him and he was off in the direction he came.

It’s encounters like this that make it all worth it for me and the earlier melancholy moments faded away.

Below are some moving pictures. They are only a couple of minutes long.

Greater-spotted woodpecker (male)

Calling in a Fox

This weekend I’m going flint-knapping with John Lord.  Thanks for the visit.

There’s just too much going on at the moment. It’s difficult to keep up with it all. I spent hours in Broaks wood just wandering along slowly trying to take everything in.

Greater Stitchwort.

Speckled wood butterfly. I also saw small cabbage whites, brimstones and orange tips.

The ponds are busy as well.

I think this is a recently hatched small red damselfly

I haven’t seen yellow archangel for a long time.

The show of bluebells never disappoint

They are iconic British woodland flowers

Why not show them off?

Wood avens or Herb Bennet, Wild strawberry, Bugle, Gorse, Herb Robert were all there as well.

Bird life was a little more difficult to see although I did catch a glimpse at a Nuthatch and I even saw a Swallow fly over.

My super-hearing detected a sound of movement in the leaf litter as I was watching the newts in a pond and I just managed to see a dark brown shape of a vole.

I also caught a glimpse of a Muntjac.

I followed the tracks and crotties for a while but lost them in amongst the undergrowth. There were some tiny tracks amongst them undoubtedy this years fawns but I didn’t see any.

Rain is forecast all next week. Who cares when the weekend is like this?

Thanks for the visit.