WALKING | A Christmas Walk At Brereton Heath Nature Reserve, Cheshire

Circular walk

• Start & End Point: Brereton Heath Nature Reserve, Cheshire, CW12 4SU
  
• Distance: 1.6 miles / 2.6Km
• Time Taken: approximately 45 minutes
  
• Elevation: n/a
• Uphill: 0/5
• Technicality: 0/5
• Scenery rating: 2/5
  

Walk Summary

This is a short and easy flat walk, with no need to plan your route in advance. Good parking, toilet and picnic facilities, popular with families and dog walkers. Extend your walk like I did by doing a couple of circuits and wandering off into the woodland.

I don’t know about you, but after an enormous Christmas dinner and a near repeat on Boxing Day, followed by copious amounts of cheese, crackers and booze, It feels really good to get back to the usual healthy eating and gym routine.

The main route around the lake is flat and paved making it pushchair & wheelchair friendly

After a couple of mammoth gym sessions in between Christmas and the new year, I also took the opportunity to spend some time outdoors. Not wanting to spend half the day traveling I opeted for a local walk, just 10 minutes drive away at a local nature reserve called Brereton Heath in Cheshire.

The nature reserve comprises over 50 hectares of woodland containing mostly silver birch and oak trees and at the centre of the reserve is a 15 acre lake.

Bracket fungi spotted in the woodland

The main walk around the lake is only just over a mile long, but it can easily be extendedby doing a couple of circuits and by detouring off into the woodland to explore like I did.

Rather than go into detail on what was a super straightforward rout, I’ll let my photos do the talking.

Boards like this provide plenty of details on the local wildlife and habitat

Evidence of active woodland management

Along the trail there are various wooden sculptures and plenty of information boards telling you about the various wildlife and habitats.

Wooden sculptures scattered throughout the nature reserve

By the time I got back to my car just umnder 2 hours later the weather was beginning to close in, and the glimpses of blue sky and sunshine had been replaced by full cloud cover and grey skies, so it would seem I headed out at just the right time!

Brereton Lake at the centre of the nature reserve

More Information

• Walks for All – Brereton Heath
• Brereton Heath Nature Reserve

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OUTDOORS | Highlights From 2018 – A Year Of Change, Turmoil & Growth

At this time of year I tend to take a look backwards in order to remind myself of all the positive experiences I’ve had, before pondering and setting intentions for the coming year. Here are some of my highlights from 2018.

I’ve never been one for new year’s resolutions, but I like to think I’m always growing and learning and despite my focus last year being on health and wellbeing, I’ve decided that 2019 will follow a similar theme, but with greater focus on the cultivation of personal inner peace and happiness.

2018 – A Year Of Big Personal Change

2018 proved to be another trying year, particularly from a personal perspective and after a lifetime of living in a family home with my daugther and partner, the past year has been very different.

My daughter moved out and bought her own home, my long-term relationship came to an end and a short-lived toxic relationship came to an abrupt end back in the summer, meaning I finished the year living alone for the first time in my life.

Lonliness is something I think people can be ashamed of admitting to feeling, but I’ve been quite open about how I feel. I find the experience of getting home from work and having no one to talk to; no one to ask about their day or tell about my own, and no one to laugh with or take care of quite difficult.

Self help and inner work to help me cope positively with change

This sense of lonliness has come as a surprise to me, as I’ve always been happy to do things on my own and consider myself to be highly independent. I have a lot of amazing friends all over the country (though none that live close by) and whilst I’m always busy and have plenty of different hobbies to keep me both active and occupied, I’m finding that none of these things is helping to assuage the pervasive feeling of lonliness.

As well as being independent, I am also adaptable and am not one to fear change, Indeed I actively embrace it, so I know that in time I’ll get used to living alone, but in the meantime I’m not going to pretend that I find it easy or enjoyable.

I’ve decided to reframe things and focus on cultivating inner pace and happiness which I hope in time will lead to a greater feeling of contentment.

All the energy I’ve spent my entire life putting into ensuring other people are happy and cared for, I plan to direct at myself, so the coming year is one I intend to make all about me.

With this new ‘me’ focus in mind, I’ve already tried several new things and have made plans and bookings for the new year, from Reiki and yoga sessions to group guided walking meditations, glamping breaks and theatre visits and I’m very much looking forward to seeing how 2019 turns out.

A Few Highlights From 2018

1. Gaining My PADI Certification

Gaining my PADI scuba diver certification and diving with nurse sharks in Cozumel, Mexico was perhaps the biggest highlight of the year. I took my daughter away for a week of well deserved relaxation and though I’d not planned to do it, she knew I’d always wanted to and talked me into going for it and I’m so glad that I did.

Read more here.

Final PADI certification dive in Cozumel, Mexico

2. Outdoor Bloggers Annual Meet Up

Getting together with like-minded people is always a joy and a group of us meet up once a year for a weekend of camping and walking. This year we spent a few days up in Yorkshire and I had a wonderful time.

Read more here.

Low Farm Campsite, North York Moors

3. Besties Summer Camping Trip

Each year a few of us head to our favourite campsite, Cae Du in Wales to spend a few days together chilling, crafting, walking and generally just enjoying each others company. I had a wonderful swim in the sea and the weather was utterly glorious, making it a perfect few days with some of my favourite people.

Find out more.

4. Walking In The Highlands

At Easter I headed up to the Scottish Highlands for what has become my annual glamping and walking trip. This year I chose Loch Katrine Eco Lodges as my base for a few days and enjoyed lots of walking and exploring in the Loch Lomond and the Trossachs national park.

Read more here.

Scottish Highlands Easter glamping and walking break

5. Whitby Goth Weekend

I made another annual pilgramage up to Whitby for a weekend of dressing up, dancing, drinking and dining in the beautiful seaside town of Whitby. We booked a cottage and had a fantastically fun time.

6. Redescovering My Love Of Music

As a child I taught myself to read music and to play the piano…but then I discovered boys and raves and well, the whole music thing fell by the wayside. With more time on my hands, it’s given me the opportunity to redescover some of the things I used to enjoy, and playing piano is one of them. I’m truly terrible I should stress, but I enjoy it, and it’s something I’m going to persist with in the coming year.

7. A Family Weekend On The Coast

For my sisters 40th I booked us a beautiful huge holiday house overlooking the sea and spent a few days with my family celebrating. We enjoyed some wonderful coastal walks as well as lots of great food and merry making!

A family walk on the beach in Angelsey

8. Private Hot Tub Glamping In The Brecon Beacons

One of my favourite glamping stays during the year was with Wigwam Holidays in the Brecon Beacons. The private wood-fired hot tub was a true delight, and I went walking and kayaking and had a thoroughly enjoyable couple of days.

Read about it here.

Wigwam Holidays Brecon Beacons

Closing Thoughts For 2018

As usual, I’d like to use my last blog of 2018 to thank my friends, family, readers and followers for continuing to support Camping with Style.

I’m hugely grateful for the positive feedback I and knowing that the things I write about resonnate and are of interest to a wider audience, is extremely rewarding, so thank you all.

I wish you love, health and happiness in 2019.

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WELLBEING | Forest Bathing – A Load Of Old Nonsense Or Is There Something To It?

Move over Hygge, it’s time to embrace Shinrin-Yoku or Forest Bathing as it’s more commonly known. If you’ve never heard of it before, it basically means spending time in a forest and using all of your senses to take in the atmosphere.

It originated in the 1980s in Japan following robust research and it now forms one of the basic cornerstones of wellbeing and healthcare in the country.

We’ve all seen the research that proves nature is beneficial to us – and if you haven’t, there are some references at the bottom of this page. From the cardio vascular benefits of walking, to the calming and renewing impact that being outdoors in the natural world can have. We’ve written several features ourselves over the last few years too on topics including walking meditation, wellbeing and why it’s important for children to spend more time outdoors.

My Experience Of Forest Bathing

Now I’ve got to admit it, I’ve been Forest Bathing for years, in fact, well before I even knew it was a thing. My house is right beside Brook Wood in the little Cheshire town that I live in. It’s not big, approximately 5 hectares of mixed woodland which includes a small stream and a woodland trail, but it’s right next to me and I’ve spent so much time in the woods that I have fondly come to regard one particular tree as ‘my’ tree.

Here’s me, forest bathing sat on my favourite tree in the woods beside my home

Whenever I’m stressed, I walk out of my front door and within a few minutes, I’m happily sat in ‘my’ tree, where I’ll stay for as long as I need in order to feel tension begin to leave my body.

I touch the tree and feel it under my palms, I sit there and isolate the sights and sounds of the wood, tuning in to what’s around me.

This refocuses of my attention, allowing me to begin tuning out the frantic cacophony of stress that’s inside my head.

The rainbow I was treated to one day whilst sat in ‘my’ tree forest bathing

Sometimes I’ll sit there for just 10 minutes and stare into space before I continue walking the woodland trail. Other times I’ll go into the woods just to sit there and have stayed there in ‘my’ tree for almost an hour.

When I first started doing it, I have to admit to feeling a bit self conscious, I mean, you expect to see kids in trees, but the sight of a grown woman randomly sitting in a tree on her own could prove a tad perplexing to the occasional dog-walkers who glance in the direction of my only partially hidden spot.

Eventually though I let go of that worry, and continue to go and sit there whenever I feel the need to. I’ve even sat there in the pouring rain and loved every minute of it.

When we are in tune with ourselves and we listen, we instinctively know what to do to ease a tangle of thoughts and knots of stress.

So do I think there’s something in Forest Bathing? Absolutely, and most of us outdoor loving types will tell you with absolute conviction that spending time outdoors isn’t just beneficial physically, but from a wellbeing and even a spiritual perspective, it’s essential.

Don’t make the mistake of believing you need to be a hippy who talks to trees to get something out of Forest Bathing though, when you boil it down, the premise is simple.

You’re simply taking time to tune your senses into the natural world, which is scientifically proven to have a stress-relieving effect.

When the Japanese government carried out research back in the 80s, they concluded that spending a couple of hours in a forest could reduce blood pressure and lower levels of cortisol (the stress hormone), but amazingly they also found that phytoncides, the chemicals released by trees, could boost the immune system due to its anti-microbial effects.

So perhaps us tree-hugging kinds aren’t quite as daft as we might look after all?

Nature Therapy Research & References

• The health benefits of the great outdoors: A systematic review and meta-analysis of greenspace exposure and health outcome
• Five steps to mental wellbeing
• How to improve mental wellbeing
• How to Connect with Nature by Tristan Gooley
• Feral – Rewilding the Land, Sea and Human Life by George Monbiot
• This is your brain on nature
• The Natural Capital Project
• Children spend only half as much time playing outside as their parents did
• Children spend less than 30 minutes playing outside a week
• Natural Childhood from The National Trust
• New research: correlations between children’s connection to nature and education, wellbeing and action to save wildlife from the RSPB
• If children lose contact with nature they won’t fight for it
• Good Childhood Inquiry

Share Your Thoughts On Forest Bathing

In the comments below let us know what your thoughts are. Do you think it’s just a fad or just hippy nonsense? Perhaps you’ve tried it, or have been doing it for years without even realising? We’d love to know!

Where to next?

• Exploring The Benefits of Walking Meditation
• Stop, stop and listen for the bough top is whistling
• How To Have A Tech-Free Family Camping Break
• Changes, Pledges & Plans To Chase Away The January Blues

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COMPETITION | Win A Beautiful BabyBelle Bell Tent Worth £154.99

Watch your children’s faces light up when you unveil this beautiful little BabyBelle tent. With all the features of a full-size bell tent it’s ideal for camping out in the garden and play. We’ll be selecting a winner the night before Christmas eve, on December 23rd at 6pm so read on to find out how to enter!

The Prize

1 BabyBelle bell tent from Bell Tent Boutique worth £154.99

How To Enter

Are you a camping mad family with camping-mad kids? If so, we’d like you to share a picture with us, either of your kids enjoying a camping trip or of your family camping set up.

You might want to share a pic of them tucked up in their sleeping bags, running around the campsite or alternatively your family-friendly camping set up.

Enter by sharing your picture with us on either Facebook in the comments of the competition post or on Twitter making sure you tag #BabyBelleTentComp @campwithstyle and @Belltentbtique

What Is The BabyBelle Tent?

Unlike most kids tents designed for summer use and play only, the BabyBelle is a real bell tent. It’s got all the same great features of a regular sized bell tent, which means it’s not just ideal for fun inthe garden, but can be used on proper camping trips too!

Features Include

• 1.36m High x 1.5m Wide
• Perfect for Outdoor Garden Play Designed For Toddlers and Kids Up To Age 5/6
• Sandstone Polycotton Canvas Fabric 200gsm
• Durable 420GSM Grey PVC Sewn-in Groundsheet
• Mosquito Mesh Secondary Doors
• 4 Zippable Windows with Mosquito Mesh with tie-backs
• 4 Roof Vents
• Heavy Duty Branded YKK Zips
• Wooden Centre and A-Frame Style Door Poles
• Canvas Pole Bag

See the full list of features on the Bell Tent Boutique website.

Terms & Conditions

• Competition open to UK residents only
• Entries can be made on the Camping with Style Facebook or Twitter page, please make sure you post using the tag #BabyBelleTentComp
• Together with Bell Tent Boutique, we’ll shortlist our 3 favourite pictures, and we’ll then take a vote to determine the winner
• By entering you are providing consent for us to share your photos on our social media channels, and to feature the 3 short-listed photos in this blog post once the competition has closed. Apart from the winner, please rest assured that none of your personal or contact details will be shared
• Entries close at 6pm 23rd December 2018
• The winners address and contact details will be shared with Bell Tent Boutique who are suppling the prize
• Campig with Style reserve the right to amend or withdraw this competition at any times
• No cash alternative offered

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