Issue #45 Washing Away the Rust

A slow wander, monsters in the woods and the need for Nature

Hello there. How has your week been? As mentioned in last week’s post, we have been facing a period of chores and insignificant yet irksome problems that would seek to stop us from getting outside as much as we would like, but at last the metaphorical and literal clouds have parted, allowing us to wander freely amongst the last of the autumn golds.

We awoke to glorious sunshine on Sunday. Keen to shake off the rust that had accumulated over the last couple of weeks, we made an early start, headed for a quiet valley in search of golden oaks and a chance to catch the woods and mires dressed in their autumn garb before winter drains all colour from the landscape.

Water gurgled alongside the path, refreshing our weary spirits and as we walked out onto the raised boardwalk, across the mosses alongside tangled willows the warm sun cut through the cool air and kissed our faces. Suddenly the weariness leaves my body. I close my eyes and see the warm red light through my eyelids and breathe in deep through my nose and back out again allowing my shoulders to sink down as I do so. I feel a wave of lightness wash over me, the rust dissolves.

I’m struck by how much I need this time in Nature. It is not a nice-to-have, it is an essential. My feeling is that we all need moments like this, but many of us have forgotten. Many others are denied the opportunity, never knowing the freedom that Nature offers.

It is a mistake to think that spending time in Nature can cure all our ills, yet it also a mistake to regard it as something we can live without. I sometimes wonder what the world would look like now if we had not been blinded to its wonder, if we had been taught connection over consumption.

A little way through the bog myrtle and willows, we spot a small herd of red deer hinds. We had hoped we might catch the tail end of the rut, but with no sight or sound of stags belching and bellowing we knew we had missed out. They watched us as we watched them, motionless, almost invisible against the orange brown tufts of dry purple moor grass, only the occasional twitch of an ear betraying their presence. Benji catches sight of them through binoculars, but soon they are gone.

Our path runs out and we weigh up wading through the mire against going back the way we came. We opt for the latter and find a spot for coffee and hot chocolate under a huge beech tree on the way. It sheds its copper leaves with each puff of wind. A rustle in the canopy first, then a swirling cascade follows. Me and Benji try to catch the leaves as they fall.

Heading up into the woods and onto the fells, I spot a monster through the trees. A huge root plate at the base of a fallen oak, a solid mass of tangled roots and rock. Birch trees have grown out of the top if its head like horns and arms of rowan protrude from its side. In places the roots have formed into spherical nodules that look like miniature heads. The woods are always full of mystery and wonder, real and imagined.

A monster lurking in the woods

The woods give way to heath and juniper scrub, and we follow a steep path out into the open and finally to a glistening tarn, fringed with birches and willows. Retracing our path, gravity assists us on our downward journey, back through the woods, over small becks, down sunken lanes lined with golden oaks and finally back to where we started. I carry the feeling of lightness with me the whole way; it has been so good to be out.

What ever you do this weekend, if you can, I urge you to get out in Nature. To try to feel it, to breathe it in and let it permeate through every fibre in your body. Let it wash away the rust and dissolve the dullness.

You need it.

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Well, that’s all for this week. Now that the season for working in the woods has kicked off, it’s a little harder to find time to write but I’m going to try and stick with it. We really appreciate the comments and feedback on our last few posts; it definitely helps us to keep going so, thank you.

Andrew, Emma and Benji x