Russet, Rufus, Red, Green and Gold

We always enjoy Autumnal walks in the New Forest and one of our favourite places to visit at this time of year is Rufus Stone.

The towering Beech trees stand like sentinels, possible witnesses to the "accidental" slaying of King William the Second (Known as Rufus for his red hair) by Sir Walter Tyrell. Hunting mistakes do seem to be a common theme in medieval regicide.

We checked out the memorial plaque but we were not here for a history lesson so much as to wander amongst the mist wreathed splendour of the forest.

Every inch of the mossy, boggy landscape beneath our feet seemed turned to bronze by the falling leaves, while those remaining on the trees shimmered in the gentle wind.

A thin dappled sunlight glimmered through after our lunch time picnic, bringing an ethereal beauty to the russet and green glow. 

I don't know how many miles we walked, it must have been at least five but nobody seemed to notice the distance as we wondered at the view.

The children kept pace with us for most of the time and there was very little questioning about how far we still had to go. They were kept busy working out how to jump streams and negotiate bogs.

I think we timed it just about perfectly, both with regard to the time of year and the duration/distance of the walk because everyone still seemed deeply satisfied on our return. I even had the opportunity to gather another bag-full of Sloes.

Don't forget to put, the Urbane Forager book on your Christmas present list. 

Order your copy now!

You can buy this lovely book for your friends and family from all good book-stores or Amazon.

the Urbane Forager: Fruit and Nuts for Free

Author: Alan Gibson

ISBN: 978-1-78507-300-7

The best Urbane Forager images are now on Pinterest. Please follow & share.

Beautiful Beeches



Beautiful Beeches in the New Forest

 

As I mentioned in the Autumn Abridged entry, Rufus Stone is one of my favourite New Forest destinations around this time of year.



A Fallen Beech



This time we were surprised by how many green leaves and beech-masts were still clinging to the majestic trees but this only increased their splendour.

Beech Masts Drop Their Nuts In Autumn

You can eat beech nuts or use them to make oil but they are damn fiddly.

Many of the Trees Have Names and Messages Carved

A great many people have left their own marks on these great trees; almost every large trunk was festooned with names and dates. Traditional tagging I gues you could call it.



It's a Jungle Out There. Well, a Forest Anyway



It’s one of those places where you can choose to follow the tracks and paths. Or you can go off Piste a bit if you prefer, although you might find yourself trapped in a holly thicket or a boggy mire.



All Ready for Xmas

 The greeny gold of the beech was set off very nicely by the holly, which was loaded with berries, another potential sign of an impending cold winter. We had lunch at the Sir Walter Tyrrel (he who shot Rufus) pub and could have easily eaten outdoors it was so warm.

Feed Me Now!

My daughter makes friends easily (with animals) and was going around recruiting other children to help feed her Donkey.

Very Prickly

I wandered off and found a tangled thicket of prickly crab apple trees on the common opposite the pub.

Crab Apples

Then we wandered back and I set off to photograph my favourite trees in the fading light, whilst the kids continued with various climbing and balancing challenges.

Steady On

I like it when the late afternoon shallow sun, filters through the the trees creating contrasting shades.

The Shard

There are a lot of fallen giants here, as if some catastrophic event bought them down but they all add to the etherial beauty of the place.



Shattered Beauty



Some of the trees look like pale ghosts in the thin light.

Ghost Trees

Some of them just remind me of giant squids!

The Kraken Wakes!