Bel's Wood

Using information about the long term history of the South Lakes and what is known about local villages from publicly available sources this is what I now know about the plot that is now Bel’s Wood. I have given the links I have used and am particularly grateful to the Crosthwaite & Lyth Valley website which gives a good long term history or the area with illustrations - link here https://www.crosthwaiteandlyth.co.uk/html/cameos/cameochapter3.php The plot is in the Gilpin Valley carved out by the River Gilpin which appears to rise in the Gilpin Plantation to the north. This flows south and briefly joins the River Kent before it arrives into the sea feeding Morecambe Bay. The hamlet of Starnthwaite is the closest settlement.  The ancient history of the Lake District shows that the land has been occupied initially by Neanderthals (130,000 BC) and then after the ice age by Homo Sapiens circa 12,000 BC. A warmer climate led to forestation of the land.  From 5,500BC the...

Over the last 2 weeks I have placed a wildlife camera in Bel's Wood with the aim of filming badgers. There are many badger setts - some with obvious signs of activity and others looking more overgrown. To take photos or video I need to locate the camera on a tree without gorse or too many twigs which is not always possible. I am experimenting currently and have started to plot the location of setts and which animals have wondered past and this schematic is at the end of this blog. I have not included squirrels, pheasants or other birds or small mammals that have been picked up by the camera. There are more setts to check and I will continue to develop the plan. My goal will be to find setts with activity which I can observe directly by sitting in the wood at night. I have been up there once to do this. I didn't see anything but could hear quite a lot of activity around me and it was a magical experience if a little disconcerting. As my night vision improved I perceived spectres...

  I have just learned that foxes share setts with badgers which may explain this photo. The camera was trained on the entrance to the badger sett. The fox has excellent vision and provides an alert call for badgers (who have poor vision).

The beck makes Bel's Wood such a special place. Either you can hear the beck or the River Gilpin into which it flows, anywhere on the site. I find it hard to photograph as it is a thin piece of water but the cascades are lovely and now they are frozen it has taken on a magical quality.         

The plot is an easily navigable oblong shape with a kink at the south east corner. It has a height difference of 30m with terraces which means you cannot see all of the site from any point. The road runs along the bottom and the neighbouring plot at the top of the incline has a row of tall conifers which are easy to spot from most places which helps with orientation. I have now taken to naming different parts of the land to help my navigation and to identify those places best suited to sunsets, fires, hammocks, tree climbing, making lunch, being on my own or bringing friends for a brew.  The first is the oldest oak tree on the site. She is so special she has her own name - Cecelia (the s essile oak)               There is a handy place for about 6 people to gather for lunch (when such things are allowed) with a flat surface to lay out food and a sheltered place to boil water. This is  The Canteen. There are also great views.   ...