It's almost Valentine's Day- if you haven't already made a deal with an ancient deity to bestow upon your girlfriend the ability to talk to wild animals, it's too late. That spell takes ages.
My family were freaking out that I was too high (O reckons 40ft but he's just as terrible at spatial awareness as me). I could have gotten higher (I have in the past) but I didn't want to upset them so came down and retold a PG version of "The Voyage of Bran"* to the kids before hopping down.
Someone has started to make a shelter on the very bottom branches which I was careful not to disturb which did make climbing on and off a little more difficult but I still loved it.
Situated almost at the very top of Shire Hill in a clearing just off from the East footpath, it's thick sprawling branches are perfect to haul yourself up onto, curl up onto a nook and tell a story to those below.
Got the highest so far (around 20ft, I'm terrible at spacial awareness!) it lost a few points for how difficult it was to get to the base of the tree (in a ditch with lots of brambles & spindley low hanging branches), the challenging reaches but gained points for the cheeky mushrooms growing on it!
It's been a few days since I had a climb. Opportunity coupled with being without a dog (he was snowed out of Glossop until Wednesday and it just feels wrong going for a long walk without him) meant that I've not been on it (and by it I mean trees) for a while.
* Every year on 12th night I go and sing at some trees - I usually make the children come with me, they were lucky this year. www.nationaltrust.org.uk/discover/his...
I really want to put a treehouse up the tree but will have to include ladders I think.
So.... It loses points for ease of climbing, and for the tricksy ivy, got a good view of my house and left an offering for the Squirrel God that lives in the tree.
Got fooled by a bit of dead ivy pretending to be a branch and nearly fell off which, coupled with the slippery snowy branches knocked my confidence so I didn't venture too much higher than 5/6ft (from the base of the tree- the fall down the roof back to my garden would have been much further!!!).
Unfortunately, I could only remember the words to No Children by The Mountain Goats so hopefully that will be enough to appease the spirits and ensure a bountiful harvest this year!
I've been a bit slack on uploading my tree climbing so prepare for a tree dump!
Tree #4
Wimped out on a snowy walk and went briefly wassailing* in the secret part of my garden above the outbuildings (where I have 4 baby fruit trees, and a small assortment of more mature trees).
Like...I get that this is a predominantly American platform ATM and that you guys are ... Going through some stuff (sending thoughts during this difficult time) but there must be some accounts that are getting you through the day?
the thing about starter packs is if like 20,000 💙🌊 folks are going to follow me for resistance reasons, a resistance thing the 20,000 of you can do is help some palestinians escape since 💙🌊 joe biden is giving the IDF another $8 billion in arms before he leaves office for trump to "finish the job."
