Dates for our February 2020 outdoor skills courses – coastal foraging and basic navigation Continue reading
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This distinctive fungi looks like something straight out of Lord of the Rings (or your other chosen fantasy film). You have probably seen this small fungus adding some colour to the otherwise often dull winter palette as it pushes it’s way through moss and leaf litter in order to blow it’s spores across the woodland. Don’t be put off by the red colour warning, as it is in fact considered edible. Continue reading
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In this, the first proper week of January (let’s face it, the bit before everyone goes back to work doesn’t count) we are all bombarded by messages trying to flog us gym memberships, holidays to far-flung corners of the earth or just a thing to wear on your wrist that tells you if you’re tired yet. Continue reading
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Marsh Samphire (Salicornia europaea) has little to do with the similarly-named Rock Samphire other than their location and a vaguely similar taste. Marsh Samphire, AKA Glasswort, is found in estuary mud and the intertidal edges of creeks and some muddy harbours. Continue reading
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Our foraging course has been by far our most popular public skills course for a decade now. Alongside those public course dates we have been training chefs, outdoor instructors and group leaders in the basic skills of foraging – plant and fungi identification, use of guidebooks, how to use and process plants and the laws that cover foraging and the picking of wild plants in the UK. We have also covered the acquisition of wild protein – both inland and on the coast, including shooting, fishing and how to cook and prepare what you gather. Continue reading
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This short, green and slightly hairy plant is almost always found in shaded wet soils within a few metres of a body of water – even if that body of water is more of a swamp than a babbling brook. It can be found across the UK and all year round, although it is most noticeable from early Spring until August-September.
There are minute and easily-missed golden-yellow flowers that almost appear to blend into the succulent leaves from March until April.
It is sometimes known as the Judas Tree, from the tale that Judas Iscariot hung himself from the bough of an Elder. There are also many (often paradoxical) folk tales surrounding the use and planting of the tree – from seeing the devil himself after burning the wood to planting Elder near a home to ward him off. Continue reading
In this blog post I will do my best to explain it, pick out the relevant parts of the legislation and steer a forager, bushcrafter or ethnobotanist in what is (hopefully) the right direction.
At the bottom of this blog post is the shortened explanation (a tl;dr), but for those who want to know exactly where that came from here are some blocks of legal text:
We have added new dates to the 2019 course calendar to cope with demand for our Foraging and Wild Foods day course, plus launched brand new Level 1 and Level foraging training courses for professionals and those who want to take their foraging seriously. Continue reading
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Back in November 2018 I spent a couple of days working on two articles for VICE – one was taking renowned sandwich chef Max Halley foraging for edibles on a North Wales beach, and for the other I wandered around a damp forest with writer Angela Hui and photographer Elijah Thomas. Each piece was part of a wider project promoting the idea of ‘microgapping’ in the UK. Continue reading
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Extreme Low Tide foraging is becoming popular and one of the increasingly common requests we get for a private coastal foraging course over here in North Wales. It’s easy to understand why – when all of the most interesting and edible parts of the beach are under the water for part of every day then there’s a lot more to see when the water has retreated to its lowest point.
The UK is home to one of the biggest tidal ranges in the world – the Severn Estuary can have a difference of as much as 15m (49ft). The tidal range of one particular spot can be dependent on several factors, ranging from the shape of the bay, inlet or estuary where the range is being measured to the underwater geology and topography, and even the direction it is facing relative to the prevailing winds. Continue reading
Within the UK you will find Bilberry bushes growing amongst heather and gorse plants on upland acidic soils. I’ve found them on pretty much every UK mountain I have climbed or visited, even if the species was only represented by a few straggly bushes clinging on between some rocks, away from the relentless grazing of sheep or deer.
It is sometimes known as the Judas Tree, from the tale that Judas Iscariot hung himself from the bough of an Elder. There are also many (often paradoxical) folk tales surrounding the use and planting of the tree – from seeing the devil himself after burning the wood to planting Elder near a home to ward him off. Continue reading
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Cep (Boletus edulis) is one of the most reassuring edible mushroom that you will find in the UK. It has a distinctive appearance, few things to confuse it with and very tasty. It’s a highly-prized mushroom in the kitchen and can be found across the Northern Hemisphere.
It is sometimes known as the Judas Tree, from the tale that Judas Iscariot hung himself from the bough of an Elder. There are also many (often paradoxical) folk tales surrounding the use and planting of the tree – from seeing the devil himself after burning the wood to planting Elder near a home to ward him off. Continue reading
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When you teach people about foraging and ‘wild food’ you often run the risk of sounding negative or over-cautious about the potential hazards that come from eating shellfish, or fungi,or whatever else it is that you are solemnly warning people about. I do this with good reason – people are paying to attend on of our North Wales foraging courses to learn more about the subject, and I have a duty of care towards them as an instructor, and just as a (mostly?) decent human being. That said – there IS a difference between laying out the potential risks and telling somebody that they shouldn’t/can’t do something. Continue reading
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Elder (Sambucus nigra) is a tall flowering shrub with clusters of white, fragrant flowers in late Spring and red berries in early autumn. It has a long history of uses as a source of food, for hedgerows, for keeping insects (and perhaps the Devil) at bay, and a host of other uses.
It is sometimes known as the Judas Tree, from the tale that Judas Iscariot hung himself from the bough of an Elder. There are also many (often paradoxical) folk tales surrounding the use and planting of the tree – from seeing the devil himself after burning the wood to planting Elder near a home to ward him off. Continue reading
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Common Beech (Fagus sylvatica) is a common deciduous tree in British woodlands. The leaves are edible for the first few weeks after they appear in the spring and the tree produces an edible nut. Continue reading
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Pignut (Conopodium majus) is a woodland plant with an edible root. It’s a popular plant with many foragers – probably as much for the effort it requires to locate, identify and excavate the edible tuber as for the taste and calorific content. Continue reading
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In the past weeks the news has featured several stories on UK knife crimes, knife law and the perception of knives as weapons as well as tools. This was followed by the announcement of a new Offensive Weapons Bill which will begin the process of changing of what is considered a legal knife, where they can be used/carried by the general public and how they can be acquired.
Last year a consultation on offensive and dangerous weapons was published, which caused a lot of discussion online from knife makers, owners and collectors from all sectors.
Whilst this is currently a bill (not yet an Act of Parliament, see the differences here) it is likely that some significant changes are coming for those who collect knives or purchase them for outdoor use. Continue reading
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Wild Garlic (Allium ursinum), AKA Ramsons, has to be one of the easiest UK edible wild plants to identify, but it’s not without some risk (see below). The vast swathes of Wild Garlic leaves carpeting my local woodlands from March onwards is a sign that the foraging ‘year’ has begun. Continue reading
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Meadowsweet (Filipendula ulmaria) is a commonly found distinctive flowering plant. The scent, somewhere between caramel and Germolene, combined with the unique shape of the leaves and the delicate flowers make this an easily identified and unusual foraging ingredient. Continue reading
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We want your outdoor questions!
Pretty much every week we receive an email, Facebook message, Twitter DM or comment somewhere that is asking for advice, information or just somebody asking for help with their own adventure.
Of course we try to help as much as we can, and it’s not unusual to find ourselves on the phone for quite a while talking through one subject or another.
This has given me an idea – why not make this more of a public process? The questions we get are often very similar to each other and I know that more people would possibly benefit from those answers.
So this is the idea – you can submit your questions to us via one of the following sources, and we will do our best to answer them in our upcoming videos: Continue reading
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What’s with all of the gun videos? Is Original Outdoors a gun channel now?
Well… No. But for the UK it’s closely related to one of the subjects that we ourselves are closely associated with – foraging and wild food.
Due to a number of UK laws the most accessible, legal and ethical source of wild meat for the keen forager is probably via a sub-12ft/lb air rifle. It’s potentially a huge subject with a lot to explore, and to be perfectly honest there is a lot of very poor information online.
We are pulling together a series of videos running through the basics of buying, owning and using an air gun in the U.K. which we can refer our customers to in the future – but rest assured we’ll also be creating more mountain, survival, bushcraft and other wilderness skills content in the coming weeks. Continue reading
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For a decade our foraging and wild foods courses are filled – but why?
My name is Richard Prideaux, and I am a forager.
It’s not much of a confession really – through Original Outdoors I have been leading foraging courses and walks for a decade or more, as well as working as a supplier of foraged plants from a local organic estate and working with chefs and restaurants to find new ways to use wild plants, fungi and lichens in dishes served to the most discerning of clients. It is safe to say that a large part of my working life outdoors has been linked to foraging and wild food, even if peripherally on our bushcraft courses. But none of that would have been possible if there hadn’t been such a demand for information and training in this ancient activity – so with shops and food suppliers all around us, why is there such a cultural draw towards edible plants and fungi?
I have two theories on this, and they require a little unpacking. They may also be complete cobblers, but allow me to explain… Continue reading
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Foraging and Wild Food with 16 Hospitality Last year we teamed up with 16 Hospitality for their first external training course – a day of foraging and wild food cooking in the woods. For 2017 they wanted to push things forward a little and really challenge their
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Rock Samphire (Crithmum maritimum) is a prized edible coastal plant that can be found on much of the UK coastline, but sometimes takes a bit of effort to locate. The taste is loved by some and loathed by others – John Wright claims it has a ‘carrots and kerosene’ flavour. I find it palatable, but not really worth the effort if you cannot locate it easily! Continue reading
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Common Wood Sorrel (Oxalis acetosella) is often listed as being toxic in wild flower identification books, but it is recommended by many foragers. There are some potential health and toxicity issues to be aware of (see below), but in small quantities it is quite a good edible wild plant with a refreshing/tangy flavour. Continue reading
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UK Knife Law Explained for the Outdoors UK legal carry law discussed with a former police officer What can I carry in the UK? Is my knife illegal? What knife can I carry for bushcraft? The above is a good example of questions we’re asked with regards
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How to zero an airgun scope Setting the sights on your target Tony from Tony’s Camo and Airgun Centre in Saltney comes back for this second video on the use of airguns. In the shooting range adjacent to his shop he shows me how he teaches people
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How to choose an air rifle Buying your first airgun Tony Dobson from Tonys Camo and Airgun Centre in Saltney kindly gave us some time to explain the basics of buying an air rifle in the UK. The video details the different types of air rifle commonly
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