My wife and I looked at woodlands as an activity for winter over 4 years ago. Its amazing how much variety there is. We thought that we would never find one that we actually wanted to own, and then found one that fitted our purposes. We bought it and have never regretted it. It puts a completely different perspective on life.
Its a good idea to form a check list of the things you think a woodland should provide, and look at as many as you possibly can. Our approach to structures is to keep everything as simple as possible and try to keep a small footprint. Anything that we choose to leave has very little value and is protected from the elements by a tarpaulin. That's how our wood store works. Its in a breezy spot with good protection from rain, and the wood dries out quickly there.
My impression is that when people go in for elaborate structures, they tend to run out of energy and enthusiasm after an initial burst of activity. So then they stop visiting their woodland and it becomes uncared for. Doing things with knowledge and efficiency helps a great deal to preserve energy and enthusiasm, which in turn results in application and improvement.
One of the things that you are likely to find if you own a woodland is that you do much more woodland management than you might have expected. Its not quite the same as bushcraft. There are factors like thinning, path maintenance, view maintenance and boundaries to consider. How do you encourage wildlife, and manage habitat? Its not that bushcraft is redundant, far from it. Its just that there are other factors that will assume a new importance.
We used solicitors specialising in land conveyancing. They helped a great deal, for example with things like environmental searches.
Anyway, I hope that you find what you are looking for. If you enjoy it half as much as we have enjoyed the experience so far, you will have a wonderful time.
Its a good idea to form a check list of the things you think a woodland should provide, and look at as many as you possibly can. Our approach to structures is to keep everything as simple as possible and try to keep a small footprint. Anything that we choose to leave has very little value and is protected from the elements by a tarpaulin. That's how our wood store works. Its in a breezy spot with good protection from rain, and the wood dries out quickly there.
My impression is that when people go in for elaborate structures, they tend to run out of energy and enthusiasm after an initial burst of activity. So then they stop visiting their woodland and it becomes uncared for. Doing things with knowledge and efficiency helps a great deal to preserve energy and enthusiasm, which in turn results in application and improvement.
One of the things that you are likely to find if you own a woodland is that you do much more woodland management than you might have expected. Its not quite the same as bushcraft. There are factors like thinning, path maintenance, view maintenance and boundaries to consider. How do you encourage wildlife, and manage habitat? Its not that bushcraft is redundant, far from it. Its just that there are other factors that will assume a new importance.
We used solicitors specialising in land conveyancing. They helped a great deal, for example with things like environmental searches.
Anyway, I hope that you find what you are looking for. If you enjoy it half as much as we have enjoyed the experience so far, you will have a wonderful time.