Woodland Wanted for Solo/Small-Group Bushcraft

[The_Taffinch]

Hi All,

I am wondering whether anyone has any woodland, preferably in the Bershire, Wiltshire or Oxfordshire area (but I am willing to travel further) that they would consider allowing me to use on an occasional basis for my bushcraft/outdoorsmanship hobby?

I’m a 40-year old Project Manager and keen outdoorsman with high respect for the countryside and the people who manage it. My activities would include overnight camping, cooking over a (small) campfire, light woodland foraging, and general self-sufficiency.

I can assure you that I would be very diligent in ensuring that my stay would have minimal impact on your woodland. I will leave the woodland tidy and undamaged, and I will be scrupulous in removing all rubbish. I would be happy to:

1. Meet with you in person or call you on the phone so that you can check that I am not the sort of person who will cause a mess or damage your property

2. Provide full verified contact and address details so that you can be assured that you can get in touch with me if there are any post/pre-stay problems. I can supply you with scanned household bills or ‘official’ communications to verify these details.

3. Provide full notice in advance of when I would like to visit the woodland

4. Send you GPS co-ordinates of the exact location that I visit so that you can either visit me when I am on-site or do a post-stay check.

5. Take and send you pre and post stay photos of the site so that you can check that I have tidied everything up and returned the camp area to its original state.

6. Provide you with my car registration number so that you would know that it is me and no-one else parked near your property

In addition, I could provide a suitable deposit as security against any problems, and I would be pleased to make a direct payment every time I camp, or carry out any site maintenance work at your direction.

If anyone can help me then I would be grateful if you could please PM me or post a reply.

Kind regards,
Matthew.

[Rankinswood]

Hi,

Specifically for Oxfordshire / Berkshire you can post under the wanted section of The Oxfordshire Woodland Group forum.

Good luck with your search

Rankinswood

[Dexter's Shed]

you sound like one of the good guys, and I wish you luck in your search, I joined a couple of bushcraft type forums as I had the idea of inviting people over to camp and help out within the woods, camp in exchange for help, however I soon changed my mind as it seemed people either wanted to take large amounts of alcohol, or that they practised stealth camping already in areas without permission, and that started alarm bells ringing for me, as I envisaged people stealth camping without asking

[The_Taffinch]

Rankinswood - Many thanks for your suggestion. I had completely missed that forum thread. Feel a bit of a dolt now. I will re-post my request there.

Dexter - Many thanks for your encouragement also. I think your post raises an interesting issue.Although I have been getting out and about in the countryside for years, I am just now getting into 'wild' camping and bushcraft, and trying to do it right by securing proper permissions from landowners. However, I know that many of my fellow bushcrafters genuinely struggle with this and resort to stealth camping in order to pursue their hobby (although sadly there are always a few who actually enjoy the 'thrill' of illegal camping). Although I am not one of them, the majority of bushcrafters who resort to stealth camping appear to be nice people from what I can see who don't want to cause any trouble or damage property. On the flip-side, landowners such as yourself are probably reluctant to provide permissions because of the few idiots who both camp unannounced AND leave the place looking a total midden. It sounds like there is disconnect between responsible bushcrafters and landowners who actually wouldn't mind granting camping permission if they could be assured of the behaviour of the bushcrafter. It's got me thinking that maybe there is a need for a forum or matchmaking service to bring the two sides together.

[oldclaypaws]

Good luck in your search, but to the best of knowledge the 'bush' is a bit thin in Berkshire, most of it has been levelled to make way for golf courses and bowling greens. Caution required, the natives drive Range Rovers and can be pretty hostile if you set up a jungle camp on the 17th Tee. There's lots of bush to be discovered on a Friday night down Newcastle Bigg Market, and the Natives can be seen in a trance like state after drinking urban jungle hallucinogenic potions such as Woo-woo and Slippery Nipple.

[The_Taffinch]

Too true in the east of this fair county where much 'bush' has been replace by gated mock-Georgian mansions and golf courses. Luckily I live in the wild west where things are far woodier.

[oldclaypaws]

'Wild West Berkshire' ? How terribly daunting and rustic that sounds. Presumably 'Wild' in this instance is defined by being at least 2km from a Swimming Pool Cleaning Service and Dog Grooming Salon?

Out ere in true West, we still burn dung for fuel and dwell in wattle and daub hovels, burns Witches on a Friday and puts lost Grokels in pasties wot we sells to Waitrose as 'finest offal, waffle & truffle compote'.

[Wendelspanswick]

Hovel! Eh you are lucky to live in a hovel, we are so poor we live in a paper bag in a septic tank and we eat the dung not burn it!

(Apologies to The Four Yorkshireman.)

[Dexter's Shed]

Hovel! Eh you are lucky to live in a hovel, we are so poor we live in a paper bag in a septic tank and we eat the dung not burn it!

(Apologies to The Four Yorkshireman.)

you lucky,lucky bugger, we live on the road outside, and eat tarmac for breakfast

[smojo]

Tarmac Dexter - you're really posh. We live down a drain and eat congealed fat from the neighbours kitchen sink.