Tree Huts In Epping Forest
Who can resist the lure of the forest in summer? Since Epping Forest is a mere cycle ride from Spitalfields, each year I visit to seek refuge among the leafy shades. And, in the depths of the forest, I come upon these makeshift tree huts which fascinate me with the variety and ingenuity of their design.
Who can be responsible? Is it children making dens or land artists exploring sculptural notions? Clearly never weatherproof, they are not human habitations. I wondered if the sprites and hobgoblins had been at work constructing arbors for the spirits of the forest. But then I remembered I had seen something similar once before, Eeyore’s hut at the edge of the Hundred Acre Wood.
Some are elaborate constructions that are worthy of architecture and others merely collections of twigs which tease the eye, questioning whether they are random or deliberate. They conjure an air of ritualistic mystery and, the more I encountered, the more intrigued I became. So much effort and skill expended suggest deliberate purpose or intent, yet they remain an enigma.
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Lovely post.
Growing up in London, I remember us once having a family picnic in Epping Forest. Perhaps one of those ‘dens’ was made by one of my older siblings 70 plus years ago!
Over the past ten years, I’ve been one of the many to add to these structures with my daughter and her friends. Tasked with carrying the largest branches, we have spent hours getting them “just so”. In Bushwood, there is one fashioned with a little stump table and seats. They are in the woods of Hampstead Heath too. (Which we have helped create from scratch or helped along). My husband used to do this as a child in East London too. I hope it carries on forever as we are soon to move away West.
Maybe this is the latest thing now that crop circles are soooo last century?
This is for drying wood for later burning in fireplaces. Thanx x x
Lovely photos and article.
There are very similar structures in the woods here in France. A local told me it was something the scouts did – though my children were in the scouts and can’t remember ever doing this. I think it is more a children thing – making camps was definitely something I did as a child and I’m sure my children did – even if not with the scouts.
If you go to the Botanic Garden in Geneva you can see this taken to the extreme and becoming “art”. Bob Verschueren created a sculpture called La Coulée – The Flow. No nails or other fixings were used. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:La_Coul%C3%A9e_(Verschueren)
I love the idea of elves & sprites building these dens in the woods, as shelter against the harsh winds or stormy nights – adorable…
It was inevitable to think of artist Andy Goldsworthy:
“I work in a quiet and subversive way.” — A.G.
Sometimes knowing “who, what, when, why” is overrated. I love the enduring mystery of
these structures. Divine imperfection.
I’m sure the trees of Epping Forest know many secrets if the stories of bank robbers hiding their spoils in there are to be believed!