Discovering the magic of the New Forest

It's easy to see why forests and woodlands feature so heavily in fantasy literature and film. The dappled light from the canopy, the twisted, gnarly branches and sudden glimpses of wildlife, the stuff pretty much writes itself.

We live about 40 minutes from the New Forest and it's fast becoming one of my absolute favourite places to lose a few hours. The ancient woodland, changing landscapes and free-roaming ponies, donkeys and pigs are but a few of its charms. It's a popular place but with over 200 sq miles to explore, there's always plenty of quiet space away from the more popular walking routes, villages and towns.

I took these photos last weekend when, thank god, the incessant rain we've been having took a day off (at least until well into the afternoon that is). I'm a bit obsessed with bark - you might have gathered this from previous posts - and whether my bark-spotting senses were just on overtime that day or it was the light or maybe just the immense variety of trees, I couldn't stop snapping beautiful worn and weathered trunks and branches.

Every good fairy tale needs a swamp.

So obviously, I was in a mystical mood this day - this weather-beaten branch has something of a witch's cape about it.

Squint a little and you might spot the shimmering bark of this statuesque tree. It instantly reminded me of Eighties fantasy films like Legend with Tom Cruise and Labyrinth with David Bowie where everything manmade or natural magically sparkles. Turns out, they exist. I already miss this shimmering tree.