Newsletter Christmas 2009
WELCOME
Well, it’s been a hectic year! I have updated my blog on the web site with photos from my trip to Scotland, including the Caledonian forest, as well as seashore photos taken at Lepe Beach in Hampshire and in Normandy.
This year I have been visiting the coast as much as possible to hone my skills in the identification and cooking of wild seashore foods with a view to running some coastal courses in the future.
We spent a very enjoyable week in France at autumn half term with our friends Maddy & Séamus and their daughters Mia and Sasha, which has inspired me to offer some events next year for families with children, as well doing more with schools. My wild food forays next year will be very much focused on seasonal foods, with more recipes – I hope this will give past participants an excuse to come again on another course! I will be using wild game, pheasant, rabbit, as well as trout from the lake at Blagdon.
Once again, I’d like to thank Steve Egginton of The Mendip Times www.mendiptimes.co.uk for featuring my articles throughout the year, if you haven’t yet discovered this vibrant regional magazine, you are missing out!
My good friends Sean ‘The Silver Fox’ Mulhall and Dave ‘Wavy’ Parke have helped me with wild food, bushcraft and mountain biking courses throughout the year, hopefully we will all do much more together in 2010.
Last but not least, I’ve very much enjoyed delivering some extremely successful inspirational events for Yeo Valley with Les Davies MBE, formerly of the Mendip Hills AONB service, now at www.westcountryman.org.
As we go into the winter, I am stocking up on some serious winter woollies with a view to my trip to the Artic in February with Ray Mears and Lars Falt. I was very lucky to be one of a few people to get a place on a rare event led by Ray himself, see below. You will be the first to hear all about it all when I get back.
Amongst other things, I shall be reviewing merino wool underwear supplied by Howies (thanks guys). The average temperature will be minus 10, but it can go down to minus 40 degrees so my winter gear will be thoroughly tested. Brrrrrrrrrr!
We were snowed in at our cottage on the Mendips during February this year (as you can see!) so I hope that we may get a bit of snow in early 2010, before I go, so I can test my gear!! All the best for the festive season,
Adrian, www.walkthemendips.com 
ARCTIC TRIP FEB 2010 AND EVENING TALK
I am very excited to be going on an Arctic Experience with Ray Mears and Lars Falt in February to Swedish Lapland. Ray Mears needs no introduction, but you may be interested to know that Lars Falt is an expert in artic survival, teaching the Swedish military all their arctic survival skills.
I will be flying to Kiruna in the very north of Sweden, then we will travel 150km north of the Arctic Circle by coach and by snow mobile to our remote artic camp.
We’ll spend a week learning all about this fascinating landscape, the Taiga.
The Taiga (derived from Russian, meaning barren place) stretches across sub-arctic regions of America and Eurasia and is larger than Amazonia, containing over a quarter of the worlds forest.
The Taiga is one of the largest reserves of standing carbon, and the permafrost underneath it contains a huge amount of methane gas – I’m looking forward to finding out much more about this. I am also hoping to see the Northern Lights!
The course is carried out in an area surrounded by national parks, and
is an area rich in heritage where Sami people still graze around 10,000
Reindeer in the area. The sort of wildlife in this area includes the Snowy
Owl, Ptarmigan, Arctic Fox, Lynx, Moose, Wolverine and European Brown Bear.
On my return, I will be holding an evening talk, with slide presentation, on my experiences and what I’ve discovered about this amazing part of the world. Refreshments will be served and it’s also a chance to chat afterwards with like-minded people.
This event is sponsored by my client, Yeo Valley Organic, and will be held at their magnificent Lakewood Conference Centre.
I am asking for donations of £5 per person, all of which will go to Survival International, the charity which helps tribal peoples defend their lives, protect their lands and determine their own futures.
Please contact us without delay to book as places are strictly limited. 01761 463356.
CHRISTMAS GIFTS
Why not give a really unique and fun gift that can be used any time of the year? Our vouchers and gifts will help to get your loved ones out into the countryside, learning new skills and having loads of fun.
GIFT VOUCHERS
Our hugely popular Gift Vouchers for one day wild food forays are just £50. Order now for a personalised .pdf voucher which you can print out and pop into a Christmas card – what could be easier! We will be offering more events next with a seasonal focus, more about game, fungi and seashore foraging, there will be lots to choose from. Pictured below, Adrian and course participants preparing their foraged finds on 7 Nov! (photo thanks to Mike Parry). You can also order vouchers in multiples of £10 that can be redeemed against orders from our new ‘gift shop’. Call or email to order your vouchers for Christmas!
PRIVATE EVENTS
Book Adrian for a private event for a gift the whole family can enjoy next year. He will tailor the day to suit your interests. Pricing is based on £50 per adult (children less if part of a family group with supervising adults). Call us for details.
WILD WALKS BOOK
Adrian’s Wild Food book, published by the Mendip Hills AONB, is available at £5.00
WILD FOOD & BUSHCRAFT GIFTS
WICKER FORAGING BASKETS Limited stocks. Large £15.00 and small £7.50 (a really handy size for foraging - small enough for children to carry yet suitable for adults too)
FIRE STEELS Fireball flint with striker. £4.95
FORAGING BAGS (aka mosquito head net). Fine weave, perfect foraging bag, can be stowed in your pocket, as used on Adrian’s courses. £4.75
GREAT STOCKING FILLERS FOR KIDS WHO ENJOY THE OUTDOORS
CAMOUFLAGE CREAM STICK A two-tone stick, great fun for kids parties in the woods! £2.25
MINI BUTTON COMPASS £1.25
MICRO-TORCH £4.50
SIGNALLING MIRROR £2.90
SURVIVAL KITS & OTHER EQUIPMENT
We can order a wide range of wild food and bushcraft equipment, just let us know what you are looking for.
PICK OF THE SEASON - THE KING OF MUSHROOMS
Many European countries have a long tradition of mushroom hunting; whole communities trudge off to the woodlands and forests to collect basket loads of mushrooms. In Italy it’s known as the ‘quiet hunt’, a contemplative exercise, widening of peripheral vision, walking slowly and looking in the right sorts of places.
Here in the UK, one particular mushroom is becoming much sought after and for good reason – it has, in my opinion, the best flavour of any mushroom. Commonly known as the Cep, it’s also called the ‘Penny Bun’ due to the appearance of its cap, which looks like a baked bun or bread roll.
The Cep (Boletus edulis), is quite common and appears at the end of summer and through autumn. Its cap can be between 12 to 25cm depending on age, is rounded although flattens out as it gets older, and is usually dark brown in colour. A key identification feature is the very edge of the cap which is often much paler than the rest of the cap. It has tubes rather than gills on the underside which are very small and fine, starting off white, but yellowing with age.
The stem is 6 to 15cm tall, and 2 to 8cm wide and relatively large or swollen compared to the cap, particularly in young specimens. The stem colour is off-white to grey/brown. Whilst often found in open situations, along roadsides or in parks, Ceps are always associated with trees such as oak, beech, birch and conifer. However, be aware of the similar looking Bitter Bolete, which is not poisonous, but extremely bitter in taste. The flesh of the Cep is white, with a firm texture. The flavour is rich, nutty and a good sized example can almost make a meal in its own right.
We found Ceps on my last
wild food foray in November, and one of the participants just happened to
be a French chef, so I asked him how he would cook this king of mushrooms.
‘Well’, he said, ‘with butter, oil, garlic and fresh parsley of course’.
Of course!
Article published in The Mendip Times. http://www.mendiptimes.co.uk/ This superb photo above does not appear in the Mendip Times, but can be seen on my blog. It was taken by Mike Parry on our Wild Food Foray on 7 November, many thanks to Mike for taking a simply wonderful shot.
NEW! FAMILY EVENTS 2010
Inspired by a fabulous week at half term with our friends Maddy & Seamus and their daughters Mia & Sasha (pictured with Maddy), we are introducing some family events at May bank holiday and in the summer holidays. These half day events provide a fun, healthy and engaging experience for parents and children.
We will have fun foraging for safe and easily-identified wild food, have a cook-up over the camp-fire and enjoy learning some basic camp craft skills such as survival shelter-building. It’s a great chance for boys and girls to let off steam in a safe environment and for parents to have some fun too!
SEASHORE FORAGING QUIZ
Can you name these seashore plants? Answers at the end of the newsletter!
No. 1
No. 2
No. 3
No. 4
EVENTS PROGRAMME 2010
This year our forays will be themed with more specific recipes and cooking ideas for seasonal foraged finds. We’ll be looking at all the wild foods available throughout the year, with different seasonal recipes from greens, casseroles & frittatas in spring, to fruit bannocks and compotes in summer, and fungi in the autumn. This gives you the unique opportunity to actually try the wild foods, cooked outdoors, on a camp fire. We’re also adding courses in fish and game preparation and outdoor cooking, again in the woods, where you’ll add foraged finds to your freshly prepared fish or game.
Sun 7 Mar: Spring Wild Food Foray & Cook-up
Sun 21 Mar: Spring Wild Food Foray & Cook-up
Thurs 11 March (evening): Arctic Trip Talk SPECIAL EVENT* in aid of Survival International
Sun 4 April: Cook in the Woods ~ Fish
Sun 2 May: Family half-day event ~ wild food, campcraft & bushcraft
Sun 1 Aug: Summer Wild Food Foray & Cook-up
Sun 15 Aug: Family half day event ~ wild food, campcraft & bushcraft
Sun 10 Oct: Fungi Foray & Cook-up
Sun 17 Oct: Fungi Foray & Cook-up
Sun 7 Nov: Cook in the Woods ~ Game
Open one-day events £50 per person, children over 12 £25 (must be accompanied
by an adult).
Family half day events, 1 adult and 1 child (aged 6 or above) £30, 2 adults
& 2 children £50 includes food & refreshments
Younger children may attend private events, by arrangement.
SPECIAL EVENT* Donation £5 per person to be collected for Survival International
FORAGING FACTS
• Avoid poisonous plants or those causing allergic reactions
• Make sure you are 100% sure of your identification before eating any plant
– carry a good plant identification book or go with a knowledgeable guide
• Take particular care with fungi – you must be totally sure of your identification,
and confident at identifying the poisonous, as well as edible, species before
eating any fungi – use several books and cross-reference them to ensure
you have an accurate identification
• Avoid plants near busy roadsides, dog walking areas, or places where chemicals
may have been used
• It is illegal to uproot or destroy any wild plant without the landowners
permission, but you can pick small quantities of leaves, nuts, fruit from
plants on public rights of way
• If you are actively foraging, please only pick a few leaves, flowers or
fruits from a number of plants across a geographical area so as not to affect
populations, and never pick a whole plant
• Please avoid picking any part of a plant if it is uncommon in the area
SUBSCRIBING / SMALL PRINT
Subscribing / Unsubscribing: You have been sent this email because you
have asked to join my mailing list, have expressed interest in my walks,
courses or services, or because you’re a friend / colleague / business associate
and I hope you may be interested. I only want to send information to you
if you want to receive it. If you do not wish to receive these occasional
mailings, please reply with a request to unsubscribe. I respect your privacy
and will never share your contact details with any other organisation or
individual. If you have been forwarded this email and would like to subscribe,
just send an email to me with a request to subscribe. Thanks.
Copyright & legal: All content and photos are copyright Adrian Boots
2009. Photos of Blagdon lake & church, & Burrington, where used,
with thanks to Dave Parke.
Walk the Mendips and Bike the Mendips are trading names of INCONET Limited.
Company number 03156219. Registered office Ashcroft House, Ellick Rd, Blagdon,
Bristol, BS40 7TU. Tel: 01761 463356. Email: adrian.boots@onetel.com
Quiz answers: 1. Sea Holly; 2. Sea Lettuce; 3. Sea Kale; 4. Marsh Samphire