location:  Hambledon, Hampshire

timings: 9.30 to 5.00pm

number of participants: 12 (minimum 2)

'everyday outdoor living' is an experience for you if are curious about developing some skills and techniques that will provide a solid foundation for living a wilder life in our modern times.  

You are invited to join me to get to know the woodland I look after called 'the wild'.  Throughout this day of discovery you will learn ways to identify some of the common trees that live in or around this beautiful place.  We will begin to explore some of the properties of these trees and equipped with small hand tools we will sensitively and sustainably gather some of the natural materials that these trees can offer.  With guidance you will have the opportunity to use small hand tools to process these unique natural materials and in your own time craft some simple but useful items that you will utilise later in this experience.  If you are considering obtaining your own tools for use on future adventures at home & beyond we can briefly look at how to maintain and care for them.

After lunch you will look at dead wood and how this can be used in the context of living a wilder life. You will learn about some ways to light fires in combination with portable wood burning stoves.  During your hunt for fire lighting materials you will discover how certain tree species can steer us towards natural sources of water.  If we find water you will help to make it clean enough to drink and add a foraged ingredient to make a seasonal wild tea.  

You will also be invited to find somewhere to design and to put up your very own tarp shelter.  Beneath this shelter or with your back against a tree you will be welcome to take some time to yourself to soak up the sights and sounds the  woodland offers.

I am certain you will use the transferable skills learned during this experience again and again in various contexts such as in a garden, campsite or if you are inspired to travel to wilder places.  To support you practicing these skills I have produced a set of guides which aim to compliment all the experiences offered. The relevant guide(s) will be sent onto you in a trade for your feedback about how you found your experience.

What's next?

'everyday outdoor living' is one of several outdoor experiences that aims to inspire you to live a wilder life in our modern times. These experiences will equip you with some valuable outdoor living skills that can be incorporated into daily life. They additionally incorporate techniques which can increase your awareness of the natural world such as mammals, birds, invertebrates, plants, trees and how they live together in a particular habitat.  Participating in one of the experiences in it's own right extremely valuable, however if you choose to participate in more they have been cunningly weaved together into a interconnected web of wisdom.