Season 2010 begins..

Anticipation is building now for a return to Clissett Wood after an almost 6 month break over winter. I find these 'in-between times' difficult because I'm not a woodland owner myself. I know I inject a vast amount of energy into Clissett as a volunteer cook and assistant to Gudrun over spring to autumn, but I feel rather dislocated from the full woodland cycle when these courses are not on. I know I should normally be doing a lot of coppicing or clearing work in the woods, and I'm not.

This winter I escaped to Italy, and spent 11 weeks in the Tuscan hills house-sitting. The hilltop I was living on was surrounded by woodland and oak valleys that have been abandoned by their owners. Nobody wants to manage them anymore. Ah, give it to me I say!

One day, I might get my own wood, and become the custodian of a slice of nature. After years and years of thinking about it, and being thwarted by the practicalities and expense of it, I don't know that I am any closer to this ever becoming a reality. So in the meantime, I'll enjoy all the things Clissett has to offer. (Picture from development week 2009)