Barney's Bimbles and Adventures

In stark contrast to my usual blogs on camping and nature, I thought it might be nice to share a little insight into my new shed workshop. Feel free to check out my short video on Youtube My new shed is the culmination of several weekends worth of hard graft as my wife and I toiled to re-invigorate our somewhat neglected little garden. For years it has been underused and not the most practical for our needs. Neither my wife nor I are especially green-fingered. We wanted a space in which we can relax, enjoy a fire or bbq, grow some vegetables (or at least try!) and house a new shed for my crafty endeavours! The largest section of our garden was on a slope so the first challenge was to level it off and build in a retaining wall. Living in a small terraced house meant that this was going to be exceptionally hard work. We had to dig out several tonnes of soil and carry it through to a skip on the street at the front of our house. I couldn’t manoeuvre a wheelbarrow through the...

After last month’s epic yomp across the North Downs, I vowed that my next camp would be a nice and relaxing hammock camp. Well, I was true to my word and packed my rucksack with all the essentials for a comfortable night in the woods, namely:  Beer, Sausages and Chocolate! Who needs a Lofty Wiseman survival tin or Dave Canterbury’s 5c’s of survival when you have those three crucial ingredients!! It was also a timely opportunity to enjoy the seasonal transition from Summer into Autumn. Pretty much every ‘outdoorsy’ person I know loves Autumn, it’s very easy to see why. Even at this early time of the season you can see the diverse Autumnal colours begin to emerge throughout the woodland. Those pesky mosquitos have started to disappear, there’s a slight chill in the air and my favourite jumpers have started to re-appear from the depths of my wardrobe. There’s no doubting that it is a great time to enjoy the outdoors. I headed up to my usual camping spot in my local woods,...