Wild camping in Epping Forest, hiking 20 miles there and back
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- Опубликовано: 6 сен 2024
- I decided to hike to Epping Forest for an overnight wild camp. It was a 40 mile round trip (not 30 like I said at the beginning of the video) and it somewhat knocked me for six, although I'm super proud for having done it.
I have looked into whether the bridge is the one from the Black Knight scene from Monty Python and the Holy Grail. There is strong evidence to suggest that it is, but I cannot confirm conclusively.
I believe the tree I highlighted has been either 'coppiced' or 'pollarded', which is where the branches of a tree are removed in a way that promotes lots of smaller, thinner branches, which are then used for building and fodder. The link to the Lindybeige video is: • Forests in the olden days - skip to around 04:20 for the relevant content (although the entire video is worth watching).
Thanks for reading this!
Hi there! I thought I'd add some helpful timestamps:
00:27 - I pan the camera across some water, as is my wont. In doing so, I highlight that I forgot to colour-correct a clip!
02:45 - an impromptu review of a candle lantern (spoiler - it gets high marks)
04:01 - I wax lyrical about leaving no trace (TL;DR - leave no trace!)
04:30 - spider webs in the morning dew
04:36 - I find the bridge from the Black Knight scene in Monty Python and the Holy Grail
05:36 - I look at a tree
06:40 - I look at a duck
07:00 - I look at a car (or two)
07:27 - I see Canary Wharf in the far distance
07:47 - I forget what I was going to say
10:12 - I see Canary Wharf in the not so far distance
12:45 - the Cutty Sark
13:10 - what death warmed up looks like
Bit disappointed with this video; the clips are not great and the editing is poor. Audio really takes a hit. But I learned a whole bunch, which is good - just need to crack on and record more videos more often so I can up my game!
I'm fortunate enough to live in Epping Forest and interested to see your video. Thumbs up for doing this but not surprised you were cold camping there as it's always the way.
I'd recommend looking up some of the ancient trees in the Forest (mostly Beech) as some of them are deeper in than you went. Keep up the good work!
Thanks for the heads up, I’ll check them out! I like the trees generally and a fellow youtuber introduced me to the tree graffiti there, some of which is still legible despite being carved in the 1940s! Like seeing the history of people having a relationship with the forest
I somehow missed this video when you uploaded, what a great walk, through very familiar territory. I have made the sleeping bag liner mistake, they really don't do anything on their own do they?! I spent a freezing night in one in Wiltshire. My thoughts on the A406 cannot be repeated in public. On the upside I've also made a hot drink on Wanstead Flats. 😁
Oddly, that view of Canary Wharf was the first I saw of it, walking across there as a teenager saying to my mate "what on earth are they building over there?"
Sorry I've taken a while to acknowledge this. Agree wholeheartedly that sleeping bag liners are bloody useless, particularly as a stand-alone sleep system! I've not repeated this walk since, prefer just to follow the main roads up to Loughton just in case I get tired! Hope all is well
Well done Dave, quite an accomplishment. I live in Stratford and have walked to camp in Epping Forest, I had terrible cramps in my hammock! I thoroughly recommend watching John Rogers videos specifically in reference to the Forest. Take care.
Hey, I checked out John Rogers and have subscribed - great shout! Thanks for the recommendation
Great video thanks so much for sharing. We love Epping forest although I don’t know how you camped there alone, it’s one hella creepy place 👻
Great hike. Well done. I'm sure you slept well that night. I know many of those places you walked through. Island Gardens is a lovely little oasis in the Big Smoke. One of my favourite watering holes is the Trafalgar Tavern across the river in Greenwich.
Ahh, I walk past the Trafalgar Tavern often! It's a great place, and I also like strolling along the shingle just outside it at low tide!
What a slog. You did it! Great video 💛🌿🙂
Finally - I can stop going on about it now!! 😋
That was some hike there very well done. I live just a bit further south than you in Bromley but I know Lea Green well mostly from being a London Black Cab Driver. I can visualise a lot of that route along the road and that is some achievement. Are you originally from NZ
Great videos. I live on the edge of Epping forest and only ever camped there as a kid when in the cadets. Mountain bike there and will do a tarp camp there before the summer is over.
Thanks for watching and for taking the time to comment. It’s a beautiful part of the world, wish I lived closer! Good luck with your tarp plans
Good job David can’t wait to see moreeee
Thanks Penelope! Really appreciate you stopping by to watch and leave a comment :)
Okay that was AWESOME!!! That really made me want to try and hike as well!! Thanks David!!
I can’t recommend it enough. It’s really enjoyable hiking long distances; you see a lot and have time to think about things and see the world from a different perspective. And camping is a lot of fun - you really feel connected to nature and (equally important) like you’ve broken away from your usual activities and so have a chance to think clearly about things. The feeling of accomplishment is also pretty amazing.
ANOTHER GREAT VIDEO! Thanks for making all of these great and interesting vlogs! It's always a welcome sight to see a video of yours definitely a nice way to relax and see some sophistication on the site
Thanks Elliot! Really kind of you, I appreciate the encouragement.
@@DaveScurlock no problem! Keep up the amazing work Dave!
Absolutely Brilliant ! That’s a long hike. I’m planning on doing my first Wild Camp in Epping Forest next week but I will not be walking, I shall get the tube from Plaistow to Loughton, unless I can find a map to follow. Thanks for getting me out ! I need it.
Nice video, I recognize most of the scenery, I also like exploring the great outdoors.
Thanks! It’s the best thing in the world, cutting loose and just wandering around seeing what’s about - love it!
Great video, I loved it. Keep it up, look forward to seeing more!
Thanks Izzy, appreciate it!
I really enjoy Your Videos. Thanks for making & looking forward to next one from Daz in Australia
Thanks Daz, glad you like them and really appreciate you letting me know!
You would love it in Wales, surrounded by places to go walking and wild camping, Also plentiful non-urban beautiful views to behold all around. Definitely think you are not really a 'city boy' at heart!
Funny how I found your channel via lockpicking and this has now somehow mutated into walking and wild camping!
Real shame how there are never any 'like minded souls' such as yourself living next door to me!
More power to you Dave, see you in Wales soon!!
Non urban rules, Anarchic Adjustment.....
I really do admire London and its history, but you're right that the countryside is really where it's at for me. Funnily enough, I'll be heading to the Welsh valleys in the not too distant future, lockdowns permitting!
You've really hit the nail on the head with the comment about the direction of my channel. I don't think lock-picking has gone for good, but I really do want to do videos on more than just one or even two subjects - there's way too much cool and interesting stuff in the world to restrict things like that! Think I'm going to do a dedicated video on the subject. Really appreciate you sticking around all this time and despite the change of direction - thank you.
That’s a good effort! I’m 11 miles from Epping forest and I don’t think I’d be able to hike it (yet!) Thanks for taking us along!
Lucky for me, it would seem - I didn't know there were pirates in them waters! Thanks for taking the time to watch and comment, I appreciate it
Hi that was a great video! Certainly far from what I expected from a wild camping video haha. But I enjoyed the tour of London and Epping Forest. You found some nice little corners of London to show off.
You passed many places really familiar to me as well, so it was a bit nostalgic haha. Like I couldnt believe that you chose to film outside that texaco at around 10 mins mark, my last job was laterally around a minute walk from there, just around the corner and generally the whole canary wharf and poplar area are quite familiar to me so it was cool to see.
Amazing hike though, really impressive distance. Surprised you didnt just jump on the tube at some point haha.
Amazing tree you found in Epping Forest. Looked like something out of a fairy tale and pretty cool that it turned put to most likely be a famous bridge, so humble and innocent looking haha.
Hope youve been good through all the craziness and hope to see you wild camp again soon! All the best!
Dave, I often find myself coming back to your videos for pure comfort, they're all beautifully crafted and presented in a manner that really calm me and inform me, not something many videos do. I'm currently planning to go wild camping with my girlfriend sometime soon (First time for both of us lol) I know it could seem like a lot to ask of you, but if you're planning on going back there sometime soon then could you document it? You're one of my favorite content creators to talk about Epping and go there while showing it to us all, I hope you're keeping well and safe 👍🏻
Elliot, I very much had this comment in mind when I was making my way to Epping Forest for the video I just published. Just want to let you know that your comment made me feel good and that saying nice things on the internet really does have an impact - so thanks! Hope your wild camp goes/went well!
Also I’d recommend following/subscribing to John Rogers channel, he makes some great footage in and around Epping, we have found lots of places to explore. He has a book on them too
As someone who grew up in loughton (21 years) and has now moved just a little further out and working in east London this really makes me want to do this!
Been looking for places to wild camp and video myself and definitely will be going to Epping Forest and back to my roots (pardon the pun) for my first time! Keep up the videos!
Hey, thanks for watching and taking the time to comment. Good luck with the wild camping and videoing adventures, I’ll keep an eye out for them
Grate video mate. You should have given me a call and have tea in Wanstead Flats!!!
I was going to! But I was against the clock on the way out and absolutely knackered on the way back. Stay tuned though - I'll post a clip that didn't make the final edit, but which I think will make you laugh...
Hi Dave, I’m planning a camp in Epping forest very soon and wondered if you had any ideas about which part of the forest was quietest? I’ve visited around chingford side before which seemed mega busy, is there a section you think is best for avoiding seeing too many people?
That tree, and the one by the knight bridge, is a pollard rather than a coppice. Coppices are when the tree is cut to ground level, pollards higher up, like you saw. Might mean the wood was a wood pasture at some point, as grazing animals cannot get at a pollard, or it may have been cut as a pollard as a boundary marker.
That's the one! It's somewhat bitter sweet to see - it's a great connection to a bygone age, but similarly highlights the loss of more sustainable lifestyles.
Tough journey when you have to pound the pavements too. What weight did you have to carry ?
Also I checked IMDB a film locations for that movie and does list Epping Forest as the location for that scene - m.imdb.com/title/tt0071853/locations?ref_=m_tt_dt_loc
Should have filmed a dramatic reenactment of the Holy Grail scene for us, for science and verification
Oh gosh, what was I thinking?! Such a missed opportunity :(
My cousin Gracie lives there just right next to it epping Forest
Your cousin Gracie is a fortunate person!
Cool film man. 🏴
Thanks!
@@DaveScurlock. I've just started buying camping gear for wild camping. I live in the brecon beacons Wales. It's Lush here in the country. 🤗
I’m very jealous - you’re in the perfect place! I think you’ll need to be more conscious of the elements than I am, given you’ll probably be out in the open and exposed rather than in the cover of trees. In any event, sounds amazing; good luck!
@@DaveScurlock yeah I hear you man. There's kinda every thing here, rivers, woods old and new. And wicked mountain's! Your films are interesting to me because you have to walk in the big city. Not my thing but good to watch it on a screen. Take it easy.
Thanks Dave, great video. I’m about to wild camp this weekend with my son in Epping Forest. We live in Stratford so it will be a similar route! How far into the forest did you make it?
Hi. Thanks for your video and tips. Have you ever seen a woman solo camping in Epping Forest?
You're welcome - thanks for watching and commenting! I've never come across anyone else wild camping whilst I've been there, male or female.
11:17 found the vids hidden msg.
Ah man:( I even saw it flash by during editing and meant to go back to see what it said, but forgot! Good eye, tho