I walked in the woods at Penrhyn Castle to look for some turning wood. I have some Christmas presents to make and I also need some tool handles for some chisels I have. Laurel works well for some of this and we have been culling out the laurel for a few months.
I am about sold out of birdhouses now and they make good practical Christmas presents with purpose. Look out for my video on making the ten minute birdhouse coming soon.
The woods were alive with wildlife and sitting at the base of a giant redwood gives a good vantage point to watch quietly and unnoticed. The leaves have all but gone now so in the woods there is much more light than normal. It’s damp of course. The smell of the woods is strong now as growth slows to a stop and the rotting vegetation is disturbed by my steps. It’s a strange mixture of sounds as I walk – seagulls and geese, curlews, robins and sheep, cattle a tractor in the way off. It’s rich really, like paint on a sound canvass as my mind fills in the blanks. More paint is colouring the walk as I top the hill that overlooks the sea.
These are the last reds of the winter colour. Last nights freeze dropped most of the leaves and also the winds the blew so violently.
Soon I reach the castle , which I am glad about. Today I will work on the Hope Chest I have been working on over the last couple of weeks. A favourite of mine is taking the clamps off. Not sure why, but I love it. Working with somehow enlivens me beyond almost anything I do.
Beneath the castle walls the wood fire kindles it heat beneath roasting tin filled with my winter favourite, roast chestnuts. I grab a bag on my way into the workshop to munch on as I clean up.
