Woodlore Blog

Click here to watch the new series online

We are excited to announce that the popular ITV series Wild Britain with Ray Mears will be returning to our screens this year for a second series. Starting on Friday 14 October, Wild Britain kicks off a new 10-part run, as Ray takes us to some of Britain’s finest and most beautiful natural habitats and celebrates the very best of our wildlife.

See the official ITV trailer for this series below:

From ITV:

In this second series, Ray ventures further afield as he explores the wild landscapes of Great Britain – ancient pine forests, deep bogs and remote mountains. From the dramatic Cairngorms in the Scottish Highlands and the underwater world of a sea loch in the Outer Hebrides, to the steep sea cliffs on an island off the coast of Wales, Ray unlocks the vital links between the plant, animal and insect worlds and the role of man in the evolution of our ever changing landscape. Sharing his knowledge of field craft and his passion for our native wildlife, Ray shows us the hidden natural world that lives just beyond our doorstep.

 Broadcast dates:

1. Caledonian Pine Forest – Friday 14 October at 8pm, ITV1 & ITV1 HD
2. Skomer – Friday 21 October at 8pm, ITV1 & ITV1 HD
3. Chalk – Friday 28 October at 8pm, ITV1 & ITV1 HD
4. Lowland River - Friday 04 November at 8pm, ITV1 & ITV1 HD
5. Sea Loch - Friday 11 November at 8pm, ITV1 & ITV1 HD
6. Ancient Forest - Friday 18 November at 8pm, ITV1 & ITV1 HD
7. Flow Country – Friday 25 November at 8pm, ITV1 & ITV1 HD
8. Broadland - Friday 02 December at 8pm, ITV1 & ITV1 HD
9. Mountain & Moorland – Friday 09 December at 8pm, ITV1 & ITV1 HD
10. Best of Show – Friday 16 December at 8pm, ITV1 & ITV1 HD

We are delighted to announce three new Woodlore courses to take place in the UK in 2012:

Woodlore Walk in the Woods with Ray Mears

The first is the welcome return of Woodlore’s classic Walk in the Woods with Ray Mears in East Sussex.  Due to popular demand, we have reinstated this fantastic chance to spend a day in the woods with Ray and to learn from him first-hand.

The second new course is the exciting Fire Lighting Techniques course; a 2-day workshop that will teach you numerous ways of fire lighting and fire management.  This course will be led by Woodlore’s Head of Operations, Dan Hume.

The third course to be announced is the brand new Rekindling the Fundamentals course.  This 5-day course is catered specifically to those who have already completed the Woodlore Fundamental Bushcraft course and wish to recap on the skills, refine their techniques, or simply find somewhere to practice.

We anticipate these courses to sell out quite fast, so please book soon to avoid disappointment. If you have any questions at all on any of these courses, please feel free to get in touch.

The very first photo has been released today of the brand new Ray Mears Bushcraft Knife. Stephen Wade Cox has been working extra hard this week to bring us our first delivery of the new oak-handled knives this morning; for the full-size photo, head over to the Woodlore Facebook page:

A special delivery of the new oak-handled Ray Mears Bushcraft Knife

This first batch of knives will go on sale on Tuesday 4 October; to receive an automated e-mail as soon as they are available to buy, please click here, and then select ‘Notify Me’.

For those who missed our earlier blog post on the subject, production of the Ray Mears Bushcraft Knife - with its handle of reclaimed Iroko wood - has now come to an end. The final batch of these knives went on sale at midday on the 1st of September, and was completely sold out by 16:30 p.m.

However, as promised, Woodlore will soon be unveiling a new version of this knife, featuring an alternative handle material. This model will be released for sale for the first time on Tuesday 4th October.

In the build-up to its release, Woodlore will be offering a series of clues on our Facebook and Twitter pages, to help you figure out which material we have chosen for the knife’s handle. The first of these clues will be released at midday today, so keep your eyes peeled!

First of all, we’d like to take this opportunity to thank you, our followers, for your continued support and interest in the Ray Mears and Woodlore Blog over this past year. If you’ve enjoyed what you’ve found here so far, stay tuned for more articles and reports from the Woodlore camp, including your own contributions.

However, if you’d like to hear more regular and exclusive news updates from us, you can now follow Woodlore on both Facebook and Twitter. Additionally, Woodlore now has its very own YouTube channel, which already features a number of instructional videos from Ray for you to check out.

Through these networking sites, we aim to keep our followers up-to-date with snippets of news on the kit, courses and expeditions that have yet to be released to the general public. Essentially, we will provide you with the news that you won’t find anywhere else.

To follow Woodlore on these sites, please visit the following links:

Keith Whitehead, Dan Hume and James Bath of the Woodlore Team

It is with sadness that we announce that long-time team member James Bath will be bidding farewell to Woodlore later this year. Since joining the company in 2006, James has become a key member of the team, ultimately earning the role of Woodlore’s Head of Operations in 2010. In 2009, James became one of only two course leaders to reach the level of Fundamental Instructor, alongside fellow leader Dan Hume.
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The Iroko-handled Ray Mears Bushcraft Knife

At the time of writing, our penultimate batch of knives has just been made available on our website, and can be seen and ordered here: The Ray Mears Bushcraft Knife

Following on from this, the very last batch of Iroko-handled knives will be made available this September.

However, this departure does not mark the end of our collaborations with Stephen Wade Cox; a new version of the Ray Mears Bushcraft Knife is currently in the works, and further news of this model will be released later this year.

Woodlore’s Summer Sale is now here! With vastly discounted prices on items including: Swazi and Norrona clothing, Ray Mears DVDs and T-Shirts, Ray Mears leather goods and the Scottish Mountain Gear 120 Litre Holdall.

For the full range, please visit the following link:

Woodlore’s Summer Sale 2011

Hurry, as stocks are limited!

We are pleased to announce that, as of this September, attendees of our Canoeing in the Ardeche expeditions will be given the chance to earn their BCU Star Awards during their course. These Paddlesport Performance Awards will help you gain the control and experience necessary for you to embark on your own wilderness canoeing expeditions, making them an excellent addition to our current course syllabus.

Paddling down the Ardeche Gorges, France

If you’d like to gain these qualifications, surrounded by the stunning scenery of the Ardeche Gorge this September, please book one of the few remaining places available here. (more…)