Timber 2022

I'm still recovering from a weekend of music and activities at Timber Festival on the wonderful Feanedock site in the National Forest. This is the fourth year (with a gap in 2020) that the festival has taken place here and it's a fitting setting for a celebration of woods and outdoors, as not so long ago this area was given over to open-cast mining; now through landscaping and the planting of trees, it's returning to nature. 

With a mix of woodland and open glades, it divides naturally into a series of linked but separate spaces for stages, food vendors, well-being activities, woodland crafts, and campfire discussions. 

Smoke Fairies

Despite all my scribblings in the programme, I didn't find time to everything I would have liked to do. We were there nice and early on Friday to catch Smoke Fairies kicking off the show on the Eyrie stage, and caught lots of incredible acts here and on the bigger Nightingale stage, lying back in the afternoon sun, eating dairy-free ice cream, and letting the music wash over me.

 Favourites? 

Smoke Fairies, atmospheric and haunting. 

The Rajasthan Heritage Brass Band, full of life, Bollywood rhythms, and joyous exuberance.  

Lunatraktors' modern protest songs and clog dancing.

Josienne Clarke silhouetted by the sun

 Josienne Clarke, despite her claims that all her songs seemed a bit melancholy, I loved their gentle sound

Ceitidh Mac on the
beautifully-sited Eyrie stage

In between there was Ivan Campo (an Indie folk trio, not the Spanish footballer), Kabantu, Mishra, Ceitidh Mac, and Haiku Salut, Unfortunately, Holy Moly and the Crackers due to close the festival on Sunday evening, and who I've been trying to catch for years, had to cancel at the last minute (but I might not have still been awake by then). By the way, dancing - whether ceilidh or bollywood - I left to others.

In and among this, I found time to  make wildflower seed balls with the National Memorial Arboretum; I dropped in and out (that's the beauty of an outdoor festival) of various talks and discussions, as wide ranging as Simon Armitage reading from his new book, The Owl and the Nightingale, and Steve Guy, aka The Hungry Guy, showing how to make your own vinegar. The most interesting I found were Louisa Ziane on the amount of waste in food production, and how Toast ale came into being to use up unwanted bread, and Dr Jack Matthews' Beginners Guide to Pebbles about the geology of  pebbles you might find in Charnwood Forest Geopark. 

In another wooded clearing, the Canopy, I watched Lives of Clay a story told through dance and music, mingling of the myths of Parvati and Shiva with a story of a modern Indian woman 

  

There were some slight disappointments - rain showers which found their way into the tent; Holy Moly and the Crackers couldn't perform as I've mentioned above, and Janet Ellis also had to cancel her Wilderness Tracks session; various glitches and injury plagued Timeless performance in a huge hour glass, and it never really seemed dark enough for the Gloaming Light Trail and the Unfurl Giants to be seen at their best.
 

But mainly it was a weekend of blissed out lazing in the sun.

Next year Timber will run from Friday 7th to Sunday 9th July, and Early Bird tickets are on sale now - see here 

I was asked along to Timber, and my ticket paid for, by the organisers Wild Rumpus, though I made a donation to the pay-it-forward scheme which aims to raise fund for free tickets for carers. Views are, of course, my own.

Off to the Forest for Timber Festival

It's one week to go till Timber Festival, and I'm delighted to have been invited along again by organisers Wild Rumpus.

This welcoming, family friendly festival is held on 1-3 July, at Feanedock, a 70 acre site in the National Forest, where trees are beginning to reclaim the land after years of open-cast mining. The underlying theme of the festival echoes this regenerative power of nature, encouraging us to get outside, sit under a tree, and feel the calming, restorative properties of natural surroundings. All the outdoorsy sort of stuff I try to incorporate into my life.

 With this in mind a lot of guest speakers will be talking about their involvement with nature - whether it's the impact of increasing woodland in the UK, or adventuring off the beaten track, discussing climate mitigation (and why it might not be enough) or planet-friendly food, there's plenty to give food (sorry) for thought. 

It's a festival, so of course there's music. The big Nightingale Stage will host a wide variety of sounds over the weekend from folk to Latin rhythms, with Penguin Cafe, The Orielles, and Holy Moly and the Crackers headlining the three evenings, while among the trees at the smaller Eyrie Stage there's alt-folk, Bollywood, and late night DJ sets. And if you fancy something more intimate, there's storytelling, spoken word performances and music around the campfire in the DIY Utopia area.

Throughout the day you could learn woodland survival crafts, spoon carving or leaf identification, participate in a dance workshop and early morning yoga, join in with a maypole dance or a drumming workshop. Or if all of this is too hectic, you could try forest bathing, follow the Gloaming Light Trail, or just lie back and listen to the trees.

I mentioned earlier the family-friendly nature of Timber, and there are certainly lots of activities for children though I haven't really covered them. To me, what's more important is that site, facilities etc are suitable for us older folks, and at Timber I've always found them to be. An added bonus at the moment is that everything takes place either outside or in well ventilated tents; I've avoided Covid so far, and I'd like to keep it that way if at all possible. An outdoor event seems a safe way to have fun.

As befits an eco-conscious event, Timber are promoting a variety of ways to travel without cars - the Timber Bike Ride, free bus shuttles from nearby train stations, and incentives to all who arrive on foot. I'm too far away, (and let's face it, not fit enough to cycle or walk) but for folks like me there's th opportunity to off-set carbon emissions. You can find more information under their Sustainability section. 

 I've been along before as a 'Timber Pioneer' courtesy of Wild Rumpus in 2018 and 2019, and thoroughly enjoyed both weekends. Having missed two years, I'm very excited for next weekend, and really grateful to Wild Rumpus for asking me along. Weather permitting, this weekend we'll do a trial run of putting up the tent, and the sit down with the programme and start to plan who to see and what to do. I suspect as always there'll not quite be time for everything.

 

Timber Festival at home

This weekend should have been Timber Festival, the National Forest's celebration of all things related to trees. The first acts were announced back before New Year but like so much else it's had to be cancelled. So, as with Glastonbury, I decided to have a mini-festival of my own at home; fortunately the Wild Rumpus team behind the festival had made arrangements ...

First up, on Friday evening, was a live on-line high wire act from Chris Bullzini, watched, not from the ground, but from up on the tightrope! Using the 360 feature I could see treetops at eye level, and ground far (too far) beneath, and actually feeling a couple of feet away while someone decides to balance on their head on a rope high in the air is scarier than watching from below. I have NO head for heights so this is certainly the nearest I'll ever get for walking among treetops. If you're feeling adventurous, you can now catch these exploits here on YouTube.

Next I went over to The Ecologist online newspaper, where Timber were staging a 'takeover' for the day, with articles replacing the sort of discussions that would have taken place at the festival.

 So I could 'hear' what Sarah Lawfull had to say about Forest Schools and the importance of children being able to access nature and have safe but challenging outdoor places to learn in. I didn't go to a Forest School (I'm not sure they were around in the 60s) but I had a private forest to play - actually a dozen or so currant bushes at the bottom of the garden which seemed so tall to a small child, through which I'd wander searching for a hidden glade (small patch of grass) where in Spring narcissi and bluebells grew. I loved it, and I think it sparked my love of trees and forests.

 And read John Everitt, chief executive of the National Forest Company writing about the Green Recovery plan for the National Forest - once a place of open-cast mining and industrial sites, now gradually returning to the wild - and how the thinking behind that plan could inform our recovery from the economic impact of corona virus.

Chris White, Ian Convery and Adam Eagle 'talk' of similar ideas in 'Valuing Nature', offering an alternative perspective on planning and resources to Boris Johnson's virtual removal of planning conditions.

By this time, I decided I needed to see some actual trees, so as the rain had almost stopped I went out to Shipley Country Park for a walk.

I started Sunday by listening to Wilderness Tracks, a regular feature of the past Timber festivals were celebrities talk to Geoff Bird about their favourite nature-inspired pieces of music. His guest was Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock, presenter of The Sky at Night, and her choices mostly had a space-related theme to them, from Stevie Wonder's Moon Blue to Holst's Mars via Hildegard von Bingen's ethereal choral music from the twelfth century, and a return to earth with 'Cattle' from Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition. She spoke of the things that inspired her interest in space - her Nigerian father's love of the night sky, the Clangers TV series, and the explorations of Gagarin and Armstrong - and how she feels both looking into space or listening to music from centuries ago both lead us to transcend our everyday lives.

Then, it was back to the Ecologist 'tent' to read about Rewilding for Human Health, and Rowan Cannon on  Wild Rumpus' work creating Art and Wonder in Wild Green Places.

I ended the weekend with a trip to Timber's virtual forest - a soundscape collected from around the world. You can listen here and learn how to add the 'track' of your own local wood or forest. Knowing about the project I taped a segment in Shipley Park on Saturday, but cut it too short, so I need to try again.

The weekend wasn't the same as one spent sleeping under canvas, and sitting around on grass, or on logs under trees, but it was a break in the dull monotony of lockdown. Hopefully next year Timber will be taking place again, meanwhile there's last year to remember.

Timber 2019 - an introductory overview

We're just back from a wonderful weekend at Timber Festival, courtesy of WildRumpus.org.uk. It's an event which combines music and fun with serious discussions on nature and environmental issues. Music, discussion, comedy, circus-style entertainers - imagine Edinburgh Fringe condensed into three days, and held in a forest.









For the rest of the year the 70 acre site at Feanedock in the National Forest is quiet and peaceful, but over the last week or so volunteers have transformed it, installing stages, marquees, bunting, art installations, and the all-important 'facilities' - compost loos on the festival site, proper water-flushing ones and hot showers on the campsite (these amenities matter so much, so how wonderful is that?)









 I'm going to be following up with more detailed posts but for now here are photos which I hope capture the joyous feel of Timber, and the wild and delightful things to be encountered there.

























There were two main music stages, Field Notes and Eyrie, and a smaller pop-up style one, Elemental, for music, poetry and talks. The fun isn't limited to the stages though.

Walking round you might encounter a swoop of (puppet) swallows, giant woodland insects, poetry on trees, discover the Eyrie stage hidden in the trees, a willow 'Earth' hung with messages of hope, super-sized board games, a giant marble run, juggling and acrobatics, and a campsite in the woods with story-telling and music.

Music wasn't just confined to the stages as Rimski and Handkerchief toured around with their bicycle piano and double bass, and The Baghdaddies accompanied a procession of cardboard figures made over the weekend by volunteers and children.

The Shimmer Tree

My favourite art installations, to which I returned time and again, were the Shimmer Tree, designed by Dan Fox, and a simple circle of hollow bamboo poles, both of which responded to air currents to make music.

 If some of this seems a bit hectic, you could find your way through a newly-created living maze, relax in a hammock with a book, book a massage or hot-tub session, or do as we did and slip slightly aside from the festival activities to take in the quiet of the forest, listen to birdsong, and later watch the sun set through the trees and from the Hollow Way Lookout.

Everything takes on a different aspect after dark, and, as the sun set, the festival site transformed into a magical wonderland.

There were of course some mishaps - mainly involving our camping set-up and lack of  waterproof coats - though there were a couple of cancelled events (sad but inevitable) and a stall which had sold out of sausage sandwiches for Sunday breakfast; the world was saved when we found bacon elsewhere :)

The weekend left me feeling refreshed and inspired, though at the same time physically exhausted so despite our intentions to stay till Monday we took the comfy option of heading home late on Sunday night. I found a lot of interesting new bands, and heard new ideas, or old ones I'd neglected, which I'd like to incorporate into my life,  but more of these later ...

Timber - enlighten, educate, and inspire

            -  music and more

            - practicalities - camping, food, and festival toilets 

Dates have now been released for next year 3/4/5 July and earlybird tickets are available at TimberFestival.org.uk

Since writing this, I've seen other reviews of Timber Festival, mainly from the point of view of families, so here are some links. Let me know if you were there too

The Brick Castle

Hodge Podge Days

Marvellous Mrs P

Typical Mummy

Timber Festival 2019 - 5th-7th July

So, another bank holiday has come and gone, which the usual mixed weather, and now it's time to really look forward to summer - to getting outside, walking in the countryside, picnics and barbecues ... and festivals! I'm not talking loud music festivals here but smaller, more intimate, quirkier gatherings, with a mix of entertainment, activities, and something to stretch the mind a little.

Timber Festival - photo credit; Andrew Allcock

You might remember that last year I was delighted to be asked along to a new local festival, Timber, a collaboration between the National Forest and arts organisation Wild Rumpus, three wonderful days of celebrating nature and the 'outdoors', held at Fearnedock on the Derbyshire/Leicestershire border. Family problems limited the time I could spend there last year, but I visited for some time on each day, and enjoyed myself immensely.

I've already mentioned Timber briefly in my round-up of local festivals  but I hope your interest is whetted so here are more details.

It runs this year from 5-7th July, again at the Fearnedock site where, fittingly, trees are beginning to hide and heal the scars left on the landscape by open cast mining. I say 'fittingly' because at the heart of Timber's ethos is the belief in the restorative power, both physical and mental, of getting outdoors and immersing ourselves in nature; a belief I personally share.

With this in mind, Timber offers many opportunities to get 'hands on' in the forest environment. Head for the Shivelight zone, where there'll be classes in yoga, tai chi, forest meditation, reiki, and mindfulness, or you can just soak your cares away in a wood-fired hot tub. Author and naturalist Emma Mitchell shows how depression and anxiety can be alleviated by getting outdoors, and Sarah Spenser will teach you how to Think Like A Tree.

Elsewhere around the 70 acre site, you can get more physical with dance sessions for both children and adults - Bhangra Tots for the younger festival-goers, Maypole dancing, Bollywood dance workshops and Flat Footing, which sounds like something I might do but is an improvised percussive dance from the Appalachian area of the US. If you don't feel like dancing, then maybe a circus skills workshop appeals?

In more practical hands-on workshops, you could try traditional wood-working techniques with pole lathes and shaving horses, test your forest survival skills, learn how to measure trees (with lasers and hugs), get busy with Hammer and Chisel to create a unique playground or find your way through the willow maze. And my husband will be pleased to know the heavy horses are back. I think being able to actually have a go at long-reining was the highlight of last year's festival for him.

The Eyrie

This all sounds rather busy and tiring, so sit back for a while and let others entertain you. There are two main performance areas. The Eyrie Stage is dedicated to music and spoken word, with poets, a brass band, two choirs, folk-influenced music and a rock band. At 'Field Notes'  you can listen to a wide range of musicians and performers from folk to synth-pop, hear Phill Jupitus, Laura Barton and Peter Owen-Jones share their favourite nature related music tracks, listen to a discussion on the controversial topic of re-wilding, or Stuart Maconie talking about his travel book, The Long Road from Jarrow. Over at 'Elemental', Vybarr Cregan-Reid looks at how our sedentary lifestyles can cause irreparable harm, in two separate events Luke Turner and Jessica J Lee talk about their memoirs and of fighting personal demons through immersing themselves in nature, and Mahsuda Snaith figures out how you can stay in touch with nature while living in an urban environment.

photo credit; Samuel Mills

Timber's location with woodland and glades lends itself to the creation of small intimate spaces for art and light installations, telling stories round a campfire, or, in The Baron in the Trees, based on Italo Calvino's novel, a circus show devised specially for Timber combining slapstick and juggling with acrobatics and aerial stunts among the trees.

There's so much going on over the weekend that I feel I've rambled on for too long yet merely scratched the surface; I'd best mention food though. If last year is anything to go by there'll be a varied offering to keep your energy levels up, plus demonstrations from The Perfectly Edible Binner Party who will show how to avoid waste by creating a two course meal out of food that otherwise would have gone to landfill, and Creative Countryside will help you discover how to forage for wild food, and how to cook it.

Last year was a wonderful relaxing, enlightening weekend, with something for everyone from the very young to oldies like me, and Timber's award of Best New Festival at the UK Festival Awards seems well deserved. It's a place where something new is to be found around every corner or tree

Note - this is, as you may guess, a promotional post, but my ramblings are all my own, and Timber was definitely a wonderful experience last year. I'd recommend it to anyone with an interest in nature and the environment - but as I've said before, it's not for petrol heads or people only interested in chart-topping music stars