As the world becomes increasingly insane it is good for me to get out of town and walk on the hills, the only trouble being that it is freezing cold here at the moment though walking up a big hill certainly does warm you up. These photo's were taken on Christmas Eve around the badger land, a place so steep that it cannot be farmed so rubbish conifers are grown upon it. For some reason my last series of photo's appeared blurryer than usual although I reduced them in the same way that I usually do, maybe it was something to do with blogger not liking me putting so many up in one go. It's a pity as they were lovely and sharp and the last one looked like the leaves were actually spinning or dancing around the beech tree.
As I am beginning to get a bit low on wood I have taken to burning some of the coal that I bought and have found that the metal grate is best removed for burning coal (and wood actually) as otherwise the heat just goes straight up the chimney instead of warming up the firebricks and the cast iron stove will not radiate heat properly.
One of the unanticipated problems that I have encountered is that a lot of the wood I have is unchoppable and because it is hardwood it is not very good for kindling whereas pine or gash wood is ideal as it burns quickly and produces a good instant hot ash layer for putting the hardwood and coal onto. Because I have a small room here I find that in the morning it is still pleasantly warm and the stove is still warm to the touch at lunchtime from the fire the night before. Coal embers will still be glowing at around five thirty in the afternoon from the previous nights fire making a new fire burn easier.
My parents used to buy a bootfull of gash wood from the local dump but the man there has stopped selling it and is taking it home for his own woodburner instead, so sources of kindling are becoming harder to find. I can pick up wood from the beach which is good for kindling but if TSHTF everybody will be down there fighting over it, though we are surrounded by woods here so there is plenty around, it just means that you have to carry it further. The learning process goes on and on anyway.
The good thing about wood is that you get warm a few times from it. Firstly by collecting and carrying it, secondly by chopping it and thirdly by burning it. I love chopping wood, there is a real nice zen-ness about hitting a piece of wood in just the right place to split it and it has nothing to do with brute force. I have a nice big three foot axe and a smaller hand axe for doing the kindling with, both of which I am slightly in love with.
