News From the Outdoor Front

I figured out it´s been a while since I last wrote something about our wilderness neighbourhood. And since we went for a walk this past weekend, to check out the blueberries and generally what´s new in the forrest, I thought to take the camera along.

Shame on me, I haven´t been to the forrest this summer as much as I should (or would like), keeping myself busy with some cool and also some not-so-cool stuff.

Our training trail, which we use in the off-season as a walking path, is steadily turning into a jungle once again. So cutting grass and clearing it up is in order as soon as we check off other projects.

We also noted the St.John´s Worts are in full bloom and in the perfect time to pick. I´ll have to use one particualarly sunny day (they should be picked on a sunny day) and head out to the meadow with a basket. We use it to make tea and healing oil. I have already started a new post just about this awsome herb and will have a recipe for you and some useful information about it.

the St.John´s Wort is plantiful this year

Since we haven´t been blazing through the woods much lately, and certainly didn´t take any dogs along, we found out that our neigbhours the bears, started crossing the path fairly close to us again. I sure hope they won´t decide to pick the blueberries at this spot, which is only 200m from the dog yard. There are more crops throughout the woods and hills, and those busy (or lazy?) humans have it so much easier to just take a bucket and pick by the house, intead of driving out, deeper into the wild :)

yes, this is bear poop

With all that big rain and generally cold summer we´re having this year, I know the mashrooms will be plentiful and huge. But when we entered the forrest, they were not just plantiful (we literaly walked through them!), but scary huge! So mushroom picking is soon too on the agenda. Besides, I totally used up all the large jars, that my mom and I filled with dried mushrooms of several kinds, during winter and spring. I love using them in the kitchen, mainly to sauces and soups.

ok, not these guys

but these guys are yummy

and these even more
(although we don´t pick them this big, as they are usually full of worms)

Oh, And I almost forgot about the blueberries. There are many, blue already but still need a week or so, to get more sweet. And it seems there will also be enough cranberries this fall. Last thing we need to check are cloudberries. They grow only on one spot - in the swamp by Lillsjön lake. Once we get brave enough to pass through the zillions of mosquitos, I´ll let ya know.

Well, folks, and that´s about it for the latest news from the woods. More work ahead of us - clearing the trail, picking and drying mushrooms and herbs. All that enjoyable work :)

Happy Trails,

Katerina