As we wound our way down the country lanes to what felt like
the middle of nowhere in our family car I couldn't help but feel excited for
what the day would bring. We were promised a fun filled packed day with lots of
outdoor demonstrations and our day with The Bushcraft Company did not
disappoint.
Walking down the stone covered paths it is easy for your
mind to conjure up pan piped music similar to that you’d hear in Peter Pan’s
Indians settlement. For nestled amongst the trees are tents that for the summer
are home to several teachers who know a lot about bushcraft.
Fire Workshop & Wilderness Cookery
We’d arrived in time for lighting fires and our instructor
who reminded my husband of Bear Grylls sounded enthusiastic about showing us
the variety of ways it is possible to make fires. We then split into smaller
tribes and had a chance to practice what we had just seen. We collected lots of sticks and bark to put into
the fire and Kerry from Blissful Domestication was keen to have a go at starting our fire with a magnifying
glass. Alas despite there being an initial spark it did not burst into flame. My
husband tried to help her too but it just wouldn't roar into action. Meanwhile a
fire appeared behind us and we all threw the sticks into it including my
daughter under supervision.
When the fire was roaring we were provided with burgers to
cook which were cooked to perfection. The staff had also cooked potato chips on site and
had lettuce, cheese and baps to accompany our burgers. They also had, water,
juice and tea available to tuck into.
Camouflage and Concealment
After creating clay models that dried quickly in the sun. It
was time for a crash course in concealment. The instructor made marks on my husband’s
face with face paint which made me think of a parrot and our eldest daughter
was happy to paint an instructors face as well as mine too!
They then played
games in the woods, running and hiding behind the trees. My husband was
fantastic as he ran around the area with our daughter and burned off a lot of
energy.
Wild Food Workshop
After a little run around we all sat down around a camp fire
and an instructor passed around some animal hides. We were asked to guess which
hide once belonged to which animal and we managed to get them all right. Then
we were off again being introduced to animal traps and reminded that if we do
go on to attempt making these to dismantle them before returning home.
Camp Craft and Survival Bracelets
Once back at the tents we were then taught how to create
little bracelets and got to toast marshmallows on the fire. We were also
treated to some lovely marshmallow and rice cereal cake that they’d made.
We had a fantastic day out in the woods and our eldest
sailed through her nap. The staff were incredibly passionate, informative and
enthusiastic about bushcraft and weren't afraid to tell us if they did not know
the answer either.
Disclosure: We were kindly given a free day out with The Bushcraft Company in exchange for a review. All words and pictures included in this post are my own.
I have linked this post to some of my favourite linkys –
This looks great and sometimes I think it's a good thing to be forced to step away from our phones. Thanks for joining us for #marvmondays xx
ReplyDeleteI agree technology is great but there's lots of fun in going back to basics.
DeleteWhat a fabulous day you had! My youngest would love to do something like this and I'm sure the older one could be persuaded. Thanks so much for sharing your adventure with us #MMBC x
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome Lisa. We certainly did have a blast.
DeleteWow you packed a lot into one day! I bet the burgers cooked on the campfire tasted delicious!
ReplyDelete#MMBC
They sure did and yes there was no chance of getting bored.
DeleteLove this blog post title. true as true can be :)
ReplyDelete#marvmondays
This sounds like a dream day. What a wonderful experience, specially for children.
ReplyDeleteIt sure was for all our family, except for baby who was looked after by her grandparents that day.
DeleteYou are creating memories for your children that will stay throughout life.
ReplyDeleteThat is so different. Thanks for sharing. Who knew there were days out like that available. Such good quality family time.
ReplyDelete#postsfromtheheart
You're welcome. It sure was.
DeleteThis looks like such a wonderful time. Thanks for sharing it. Makes me yearn for ahike in the woods, curiously what I wrote about too! #mg xo
ReplyDeleteIt certainly was
DeleteOh wow! That looks like such a fantastic day out! What a lot of fun x
ReplyDeleteWe sure had a great time.
DeleteIt looks like you guys had an amazing time and fun reconnecting without devices. #CandidCuddles
ReplyDeleteWe did. Thank you
DeleteI love your title, it says it all really. What a wonderful back to nature looking day #TriedTested
ReplyDeleteReading through this again, I'm impressed by how much they managed to squeeze into a day for you all. I bet your daughter's not stopped talking about it!
DeleteThanks for linking up with me on #CountryKids.
Thank you Fiona. Yes there was no chance of us getting bored. My two year old daughter summed it up in one word 'fun'.
DeleteI love this, I totally agree that the best way to connect is with no wifi, when we were in Tasmania last year we stayed somewhere where there was no conceit for days, we hiked and read and played games, it was fantastic #mg
ReplyDeleteSometimes just switching off from technology and getting back to nature is what we need.
DeleteThere is nothing better than getting away from the daily grind, and getting back to nature! Thanks for linking up with #TriedTested
ReplyDeleteThat certainly is true
Delete#dreamteam #triedtested This sounds like a fab experience and great to leave the hussle and bustle of the daily grind at home x
ReplyDeleteHere, here I agree with you
DeleteWow! This looks like so much fun. I'm kind of jealous. #dreamteam
ReplyDeleteAwww don't be. There are plenty more open days coming up.
DeleteOoh, this looks so much fun! I love being outside in nature. As much as I love a good wifi connection, it's good to have a break from the internet and live in the real world for a while! #PostsFromTheHeart
ReplyDeleteHaha it certainly is
DeleteWhat an amazing time. My boys would love a weekend like this. Off to investigate for the summer holidays. #outdoorblogger
ReplyDeleteI'm pleased to have inspired you
DeleteWow, looks like a great day out, my son would be in heaven x
ReplyDelete#Mg
It sure was.
DeleteWhat a different kind of activity to do, I bet it was so much fun! Love that you got to cook your own food and toast marshmallows :) x
ReplyDeleteIt certainly was great to have a break from the norm and the food certainly went down well with all concerned I think
Deleteooh this is the second review of this day I've read tonight and it looks like you all had such good fun! Thanks for sharing with us at #MondayEscapes
ReplyDeleteIt was superb. Thank you for reading my post.
DeleteLooks like a day well spent! Toasting marshmallows by the fire sounds wonderful!
ReplyDeleteI grew up camping and learnt a lot of these skills (especially marshmallow toasting) as a kid. Looks like a great way to relive those memories #FarawayFiles
ReplyDeleteThis looks like a great adventure, we love walking in the forests but I'm sure my kids would love all these activities too and learn some great skills. #CountryKids
ReplyDeleteLooks like a brilliant day!!! Love the little clay animals they made. What a great outdoor activity. #countrykids
ReplyDeleteI love the title of your post and this is the kind of connection we should be mad about, not online! Love all your photos. It looks so much fun and it's lovely to see the kids enjoy it too and not just the adults :) #countrykids
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely adventure for the kids. It's the kind of thing we used to do as a treat at brownies when I was a child. #countrykids
ReplyDeleteWhat an amazing day. Lucky you. #postsfromtheheart
ReplyDeleteWow this looks fantastic, I would love to do something like this with G. The perfect #MyFamilyAdventure - thanks so much for joining in x
ReplyDeleteGreat idea! :) I love the idea of this. Popping over from #CountryKids :)
ReplyDeleteSuch a fantastic day out in nature for you all and lots of great memories made #countrykidsfun
ReplyDeleteSounds like our summer girl guide meetings in the 70's. Each patrol had a corner of a wood and we had to make a fire and cook tea, whilst fashioning washing up stands out of wood and string. Would love to do this with my children #farawayfiles
ReplyDeleteWhat an amazing experience. I bet you did feel a lot more connected to nature and each other after this. I love your photos - don;t suppose you'd like to link up with #PointShoot I'd love to have you! #MG
ReplyDeleteBecause who needs wifi if you have nature to explore and surf!
ReplyDelete#countrykids
This sounds like so much fun! My daughter would love this as she is a bit obsessed with going to the woods (my fault!), but there aren't any near us. I definitely feel the need to get out of the city and into the wilderness (at least for a short while!). #PostsFromTheHeart
ReplyDeleteWow this looks like such a lovely family experience and perfect for your family I imagine, I think our boys would love it too, thanks so much for linking up #Mondayescapes x
ReplyDeleteI got invited to this but sadly could'nt go. What an amazing day we missed out on.#PostsFromTheHeart
ReplyDeleteHi Helena, what a fantastic day out for both children and adults! Just being out in nature is wonderful, but getting to do real outdoorsy things with your daughter must have been wonderful.
ReplyDeleteThank you for linking up with the #MMBC (sorry it's a tad late).
xx
What a fun day out for the family! There were so many great activities here that were fun but also had good learning & skills involved in them. The burgers look so yum. And the quote is right on point! There's something magical about connecting with nature. Thanks for sharing the love with us at #candidcuddles xx
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful family adventure.
ReplyDeleteThanks for linking up with #TriedTested this week x
Oh wow I would love this Helena. There's nothing better than getting back to nature. Well except maybe marshmallows - but you had those too! ;) Thanks for sharing with #DreamTeam x
ReplyDeletePopping back to say thank you for linking up to #PointShoot 📸 too! I love this post and think your message of getting reconnected is such a powerful one. Thank you trot reminding me 💙
ReplyDeleteI knew from the title of this post that I was going to love it. And I was not wrong! I would love to do something like this. There is nothing better than disconnecting the your phone and to just enjoy nature!
ReplyDeleteWhat a fantastic day out Helena, it looks like you all had so much fun! We have done several such bushcraft days in the last few years, and we learn so much every time. Love the quote - I used it on my New Year post, as connection is my One Word for 2017 ;)
ReplyDelete#CountryKids
Sounds like it was a fabulous day. I love the sound of the burgers cooked on the fire and your hubby sounded like he had fun running around with your daughter and hiding behind the trees. I love the reminder that whilst there is no wifi in the forest, you still get a better connection from it. #countrykids
ReplyDeleteWe love getting out into the woods and not having any WiFi would be an added bonus! My boys would absolutely adore a day like this. I've often wondered about Bushcraft - it looks like such a great thing to do. Thanks for sharing on #FarawayFiles
ReplyDeleteThis looks like a really fun-filled day, so many great outdoor activities to enjoy.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like a wonderful day. Sort of skills that you can keep on revisiting as your Eldest grows. All for the idea of connecting to nature. #CountryKids
ReplyDeleteWhat a great place to visit, I love the clay models, mine would love making those types of things.
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like an amazing day and something I'd love to do with my family. We did a very short taster session a few months back which I enjoyed.
ReplyDeleteWho would need WiFi in forest? You had so much fun!
ReplyDelete