Tuesday 8 June 2021

30 Days Wild - Week One

Hello!  I didn't mean to stay away for so long but May got on top of me and I retreated.  However, I have come home from a half term camping trip feeling relaxed, revived and ready to face the world again. 











I have decided to have another go at 30 Days Wild, the annual campaign run by The Wildlife Trusts which encourages us to do one wild thing each day during the month of June.  I have participated in this before but never completed it, rain usually defeating me, but so far, it's going well.  This year, 123,129 people have registered with the campaign, doing something to put themselves in touch with the natural world every day.

We were camping on The Lizard in Cornwall last week which made it easy.  The campsite is rural with lovely mature trees and hedgerows, reached at the end of a mile-long, single-track lane through the Gwendreath Valley.  Each morning I awoke to clamouring birdsong and stepped outside the tent, barefoot, onto grass which was still wet with dew.  I watched the daisies open out their petals as the morning sun touched them.  One morning, an unfamiliar butterfly landed on my t-shirt and sat there for a while (I think it was a fritillary but I don't know which one).  One evening I spent quite a long time examining the lichens on the trees around our pitch.  At night, an owl hooted.   Campers are very aware of the weather and on the hot, sunny days we went to the beach, watched the light change over the water, lay in the warmth of the sun and listened to the rhythm of the waves as they landed on the shore.  I paddled in the shallows of cool, clear water and poked about in rock pools.  On the day the sun didn't shine, we noticed the mist over the water and watched it thin out.  I spent some mindful minutes contemplating all this every day, although most of the time I simply enjoyed it.

Returning home, my acts of wildness require more effort.  On Day 6 I visited my friend in the local hospice and stepped outside when staff needed to attend to her.  The garden is beautifully planted in a cottage style and I sat and watched great tits and dunnocks on the bird feeders while a grey squirrel scampered around on the ground, picking up the dropped seeds.  Now that I have no cats, perhaps I will set up a bird feeding station?  I didn't want to do it before because it didn't seem fair.  On Day 7 I met with two other friends in a garden.  As we drank tea and listened to the birdsong I told them about 30 Days Wild and one of them slipped off her shoes to feel the grass beneath her feet. 

These acts of wildness don't need to be grand.  I couldn't go to a beach today but I could take a mug of tea into my garden, listen to the birds, watch the bees and think about my relationship with the natural world.  I could sit down, slip off my shoes and read a book.  If it rains tomorrow, I could sit in the summerhouse with the doors open, listen to the raindrops and smell the petrichor.  It's all about connexion.

See you soon.  Take care and stay safe.

Love, Mrs Tiggywinkle x




18 comments:

  1. I'd never heard of 30 days wild! I look forward to reading abut it. (Good to see you back.)

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    1. Thank you! It feels right to be here again. x

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  2. I’m not doing 30 days wild but I am blogging everyday and noticing nature as usual. It was lovely to read about your first week and I’m pleased you managed to have a camping trip to the sea. B x

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    1. I'm enjoying reading your daily posts, Barbara, and I admire you for taking it on, it's very disciplined. x

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  3. That sounds very good for the soul. Glad to hear you've been away for a change of scenery and that the tent has had an airing. x

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    1. Yep, my soul was singing. It took us far longer than usual to pack the car simply because we hadn't done it for almost two years and the space is very tight. We definitely need more practice. x

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  4. I usually take part in 30 days wild but haven't this year, like you I am still enjoying nature everyday. Lovely photos of your camping holiday, it's good to get away for a few days by the sea:)

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    1. I've always enjoyed your 30 Days Wild posts, Rosie. x

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  5. I haven't joined in with the 30 days wild but must admit it is something that I do most days anyway. I find it comforting to connect with nature particularly the wild weather elements. May bought such unusual weather, even snow so rather difficult not to notice. So glad you have been able to get away for a break and continue with your acts of wildness.

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    1. Your posts are full of nature's wild things, I love seeing where you live. May was horrible here, cold and very wet but no snow here, although I saw on the weather forecast this morning that frost is forecast for the north of Scotland - in June! x

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  6. I've not heard of 30 days wild, but it sounds like you are well on your way and enjoying it very much. Beautiful photos of your camping holiday. We are off to the wilds this weekend and there will be a lot of nature to interact with.

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    1. You show us beautiful wild places, Lorrie. x

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  7. 30 days wild is a great challenge, and it really encourages me to take notice of those little things I would usually overlook.
    Camping sounds wonderful. X

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    1. The camping was indeed wonderful, so much so that we considered staying for an extra day, but the seven-and-a-half-hour drive home was not wonderful! x

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  8. Fabulous photos of your holiday.I do like the sound of the 30 days wild challenge. Wish they would do something like that here although on giving it some thought perhaps they do and I just haven't found it yet. Mind you perhaps I could do it myself anyhow. Camping in Cornwall brings back good memories of frequent camping short trips to National Parks here when my daughter was a child. It is fun! Keep well Amanda x

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    1. Thanks Amanda. A couple of years ago I suggested to my husband that we might be getting a bit long in the tooth for camping and his response was to buy a new tent! x

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    2. Ha! Ha! What can you say to that!

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    3. Well, I shan't tell you what I did say because it may paint me in a bad light! x

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