Fences

It's over a mile's steady uphill walking through the forestry to reach the nearest open moorland where, as we pass through the forestry gate and begin to follow the rough track beyond, we have that same feeling of uplift, of, somehow, freedom, as we have as we walk out onto a wide, clean, beach.

We followed the track today to its end where, as I've mentioned before, there is this silly notice which announces what is, by our standards, a relatively average view, now spoiled by a new section of deer fencing through which, we noticed, there is no gate to allow passage for those who might want to follow the vestiges of a path that continues across the moor and up through the small glen in the middle distance.

We suppose that the purpose of the new fence is to enclose an area for further planting, the fence being necessary because red deer roam this land. The soil profiles exposed along the track average about a foot thick and will be a pretty miserable base for anything except conifers.

It's a sad prospect but many seem fixated on solving the climate crisis by planting trees irrespective of whether they will thrive in a location - there is no sign in the peat of any roots from previous forests.

Not that the division of this land is anything new. It's criss-crossed by ancient walls, some of them massive undertakings, whose original purpose is long forgotten.