Autumn Campcraft

‘no need to be uncomfortable in the great outdoors’

Have you ever wondered what your kids get up to when they go off camping with one of the many different youth organisations we have in this country?

Well with the Sea Cadets we always try to make it a special trip as many of our younger cadets have never camped in their lives, or even wandered freely outdoors. There is a lot to learn if you want to live comfortably outdoors but even if the weather is not being nice to you all the time there is no need to be uncomfortable.

Photo 27-11-2014 08 59 06
Campcraft in style

I spent a lovely weekend at the beginning of October this year with my friends Dave Lewis and Charlie Brookes teaching campcraft to Sea Cadets from North London in the beautiful military training area that is Pippingford Park located in the Ashdown Forest. The public do not have access to this area and if the military are not running exercises then it can be a most beautiful and tranquil place to visit.

Photo 27-11-2014 08 42 33
The beautiful Pippingford Park

We had a small group of lads for this weekend and we started off by teaching them the basics of navigation. When I say ‘we’ I must truthfully say Dave taught the cadets: I spent most of the time trying to get to grips with the manual settings of my new D3200 Nikon camera.

The picture directly below was taken beside one of the many different weirs with a very slow shutter speed to try and capture that feeling of motion.

Photo 27-11-2014 08 44 32
Playing with my new camera and navigating

In between learning the art of navigation and talking about the various properties of kit I snapped these two pictures with the leaf hanging off a spider’s thread. I like the totally different effect when the focus changes from the leaf to Dave.

Photo 27-11-2014 08 50 49
Looking and learning

As usual with our weekends we spend a lot of time with the cadets discussing the different signs that can help us with navigation.

Below you can see Dave explaining to the cadets how the shape of lone trees on exposed slopes can reveal the prevailing wind direction. I taught the cadets about how to distinguish different tree types by looking at the leaves, bark and (in the example below, with the beech nuts) the fruit. Knowing your trees, for example whether they are coniferous or deciduous, is key to successful map reading.

We also got the cadets to identify animal tracks when they spotted them. The picture at the bottom left shows a steep slope where the hoof marks of a herd of deer could be clearly seen as they had tried to scramble up or down the slope.

Not all the signs are natural and the cadets soon learned to identify man-made objects such as this stepped weir (bottom right) so that they could identify where they were on the map easily.

Photo 27-11-2014 08 52 56
Outdoor signs

The weather was a bit damp that weekend and as soon as we returned to Crowborough Army Camp we set up our tents, hammocks and tarps.

For our classes we set up a large tarp to keep the worst of the weather off us. The cadets put up the large tarp with a bit of instruction from us.

In the picture below the cadets are being introduced to the safe use of camp stoves.

Photo 27-11-2014 08 54 34
Tarps up

After getting the stoves going the cadets got some food cooked and while they were doing this I had a look around and managed to get the lovely shot below of the spiders web covered in water droplets.

After tea we had a evening wander in the nearby woodland but did not stray too far as the military were conducting exercises there. Thankfully there is a lot of dead wood in that area so it did not take long to get together enough for a fire for the evening.

Photo 27-11-2014 08 55 48
Preparing for nightime

The evening fire turned out to be quite a nice show in the end. As many of you will know I collect ‘Fire Faces‘ and will happily sit for hours in front of a fire taking pictures. Of every 100 or so I photographs I take I probably keep only one. I call the picture directly below ‘The Three Amigos’ as I can see a cat on the left, a rooster in the middle and a dog on the right. Take your time and see what you can see.

The usual marshmallows and biscuits came out for a relaxed evening by the fireside.

Photo 27-11-2014 08 40 14
Fireside fun

Sunday morning was spent discussing all the different kit they will be expected to use outdoors. The classes cover kit such as rollmats, sleeping bags, bothy bags, rucksacks, food, packing, tents, first aid and footwear.

The amount of information they need to take in is enormous so at this basic level they are not tested on it. As they get older and move on to more advanced courses like the Level 2 Award in Assisting in Basic Expedition Leadership they will then be tested on the subjects.

Photo 27-11-2014 08 57 21
Campcraft classes

On the Sunday morning we were joined by our friend and fellow Sea Cadet instructor Charlie Brookes. Charlie and myself took the cadets out of the camp into the woods to do some micro navigation. Up to this point the cadets had just been learning how to use maps for navigating so this short walk was just to introduce them to the use of the compass.

After we had finished with the compasses Charlie and myself got our EDC hammocks out for the cadets to try out and needless to say that they were a great hit – no need to be uncomfortable in the great outdoors.

Photo 27-11-2014 08 38 15
Chilling out on a Sunday morning

Just before lunchtime we packed away all the tarps, tents and kit. While we were doing this a cadet called me over to one of the tents. The inner tent was covered in scores of baby spiders – it seems the heat of his body had caused a nest of spiders to hatch in the grass under the tent. They were really minute – the one I photographed was right at the edge of what my camera could handle.

After lunch it was time to parade, pass out the certificates and load up onto the buses to head home.

Photo 27-11-2014 08 58 46
Wrap up time

This was a great weekend – the weather was not the best but as we took our time and prepared well everyone had a great time and came away with some lovely memories and new skills.

Cheers

George

The Poppies in the Moat – Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red

I have served with the forces for a short period and the cadet forces for quite a number of years so Remembrance Sunday is always a time for me to reflect on the sacrifice others have given to ensure our continued safety.

I took my children Catherine and Finlay to the Poppies in the Moat display at the Tower of London recently; even though there were thousands of people there it was well worth the effort.

When we arrived the first building that took our breath away was the Shard. I had never been up close to this ‘blade of glass’ and it sure is stunning. While we walked around to the Tower we stopped to look over HMS Belfast, the ship I worked on for many years as a Sea Cadet instructor. Nowadays I do not attend the ship evening sessions as I live too far away but I still teach cadets on weekend courses doing adventure training.

Visit to the Poppy display
Visit to the Poppy display

It took us a long time to get over Tower Bridge due to the sheer number of people and the small alleyways. The slow shuffling was well worth the wait as the sight of all the poppies were amazing. I would have loved to have been able to just sit there and reflect but the sheer number of people moving around me (and the kids wanting to see more) made that impossible.

Each of these 888,246 poppies in this display represents one person from the British and Colonial forces who died during the First World War and is truly an awe-inspiring sight.

Reflecting
Reflecting

I took a couple of shots and then I made them black and white in Photoshop but kept the red in each picture. This is the part of the display that is called ‘The Wave’. The picture I took of it does not do this piece of artistic brilliance any justice and if you can get down to see it then do so.

The Wave
The Wave

The other picture that I played with is the one with the waterfall of poppies. We waited a long time to get to the corner where the trees and bushes were. I placed Catherine and Finlay on the wall and slowly stepped back before taking the shot but I could not move far because of the throng of people around us.

The Waterfall
Catherine and Finlay

While I am writing this I am listening to a song on television from the Royal British Legion Festival of Remembrance called the Shores of Normandy by Jim Radford. Jim was a 15 year old galley boy working on a tug maneuvering the blocks of the Mulberry harbour into place on D-Day. His song is beautiful and recounts what he saw that day as he watched the storming of the Normandy beaches. I know this display represents those British and Colonial deaths in the First World War but truly this display represents far more to me.

The Waterfall
The Waterfall

Once we had finished we came across some members of the Parachute Regiment selling poppies. I introduced myself as an ex-Para and asked this sergeant if he was happy to have his picture taken with the kids and he was happy to oblige.

Then we were off sightseeing at all the strange buildings in the city centre. We ended up at the Monument and Catherine asked if we could go up. I had never been up before – the kids climbed all 311 steps without stopping for a break once.

Photo 08-11-2014 19 31 10
Sightseeing

The views from the top were brilliant looking over St Paul’s Cathedral, HMS Belfast and Tower Bridge.

The Monument View
The Monument View

The display of poppies is to be dismantled on the 12th of November but the section known as The Wave will be around until the end of the month before going on a national tour.

Cheers

George

Late Summer Bimbles

July, August and September were very busy months for me this year so I did not post up much about the bimbles around my local village of Bramley.

Part of this was due to receiving a rather lovely birthday present in September from my wife Alison of a new Nikon D3200 DSLR camera. I have never owned a camera that requires anything more than point and shoot before so I have spent many an evening reading up on it and practising.

Some of the pictures in this post have been taken with my Nokia phone and some with my new DSLR.

I have  put up just a few of the many pictures I have taken over the last two months and separated them into categories.

Butterflies

I am not that knowledgable about these lovely creatures so had to rely on a guide book to ID them. The three below from top left clockwise are a Comma Butterfly, a Marble White and a Silverwashed Fritillary. All were photographed in woodland glades enjoying the sunlight.

Photo 27-10-2014 09 37 24
Comma Butterfly, a Marble White and a Silverwashed Fritillary

Flowers

As usual flowers are my passion with the range of smells, colours and textures they offer. I am still confused by some flowers I find in and around the woods by our village – there must be lots of garden escapes. The yellow flower my daughter is looking at was a late bloomer; I could not identify it from my books but she liked it.

The cornflower is always a nice find but the most unusual I spotted was at The Vyne National Trust property on the outskirts of Bramley. The little flower on the bottom right was sitting on top of a perfectly manicured hedge and was too good a shot to miss.

Photo 27-10-2014 09 37 47
Cornflower (bottom left) and two unknowns

Two beautiful plants for late summer are Woundwort and Borage. Both plants have been used medicinally in the past, for treating cuts and kidney problems respectively.

Photo 27-10-2014 09 38 03
Woundwort and Borage

Ok not a flower but the flowering heads of the hogweed when caught at the right angle and light turn into a thing of beauty.

Photo 27-10-2014 09 39 32
The majestic hogweed

Fruits and nuts

I luckily have a local woodland next to me that has a carpet of wild strawberries. In the summer it was great to see these little red berries appearing and getting to nibble the odd one before the birds or slugs got to them. I managed to photograph far more hazlenuts this year (bottom left) before the squirrels snaffled them all. I don’t know if that was because I was really looking for them, there were more than usual, there were fewer squirrels about, or a combination of all of the above. As usual though there were plenty of horse chestnuts for my kids to collect. My rucksack always ended up being full of them every time I took the kids out.

Photo 27-10-2014 09 38 24
Wild Strawberries, Hazelnuts and Horse Chestnuts

Finlay spotted the apple tree in full bloom and was soon scrumping for apples in its branches. I took the bottom shot as I really liked the contrast of red and green with the rosehips and apples, both beautiful and full of vitamin C.

Photo 27-10-2014 09 38 56
Scrumping for apples through the rosehips

Leaves

I have been watching the leaves grow all year and now into the autumn I am watching them start to die off. They can be quite striking though at times with the higgeldy piggeldy white trail of the larvae from the moth larvae Nepticula aurella. A hazel leaf (bottom picture) may seem quite boring to look at first but if you put it to the light and peer closely then you see a whole new world.

Photo 27-10-2014 09 39 19
Leaves up close

Seeds

The wood aven flower is a lovely yellow colour and the plant has many uses but the flower only lasts a few months. To know it all year round you need to recognise the shape of its leaves and also the spiky seed head it produces (top left). Once you have identified one you will see them all over the place.
I like to peer inside the little capsules containing the bluebell seeds just before they fall apart and drop their seeds (bottom left). This is a second period of beauty to me with this plant, often overlooked by most people. I have no idea what the seed pod in the top right is from (taken in my garden) but it is striking.

The last one at the bottom right shows the seeds from the willowherb starting to unfurl.

Photo 27-10-2014 09 39 46
Seeds – Woodaven, Bluebells, Willowherb and one unknown (top right)

I could not resist putting this picture of the willowherb up on its own as it captures the moment the little hairs with their attached seeds are just starting to float off.

Photo 27-10-2014 09 40 00
The beauty of a Willowherb seed pod unfurling

I came across this little chap (not my son) Mr Squirrel (though it could have been Mrs Squirrel) lying in the leaf litter on one walk with Finlay. Over a number of weeks we would see this little chap slowly decomposing and both Finlay and myself found it totally fascinating.

Photo 27-10-2014 09 40 12
Mr Squirrel returning to the earth

Insects

Over the summer I have been trying to get some good macro shots of insects and I was particularly impressed with the spider in the top left picture. I took this one with my new camera as well as the honeybee (I think that is what it is) at the bottom right. The other two were captured using my Nokia phone camera.

Photo 27-10-2014 09 40 31
Up close and personal with the insects

This little packet of pink madness is the red gall of the gall wasp. I found it hanging off a bramble branch and was very confused to what it was at first until I had looked it up. I will be looking out for more of them next year when I will hopefully have some extension tubes for my camera lens so as to take far better macro pictures.

Photo 27-10-2014 09 39 09
The red gall of the gall wasp

A last little look at the beauty of the small fly and the daddy long legs.

Photo 27-10-2014 09 40 48
The fly and daddy long legs

My last picture is of one of the few ground-dwelling fungi I spotted over the summer. As far as I am concerned it is an LBJ (Little Brown Jobbie): I do not study these little critters enough to identify the different types of LBJs. I liked this one for the forlorn look it had sitting on its own on the woodland floor after something or someone had snapped it.

Thankfully as autumn has progressed more and more fungi have started to pop up all over the woods which I can identify.

Photo 27-10-2014 09 41 01
An early dejected looking LBJ

I had a great summer photographing around my village and look forward to getting some great pictures as the autumn comes to a close and winter sets in.

Cheers

George