solstice Archives - Woodland Classroom

11 Jan

Wassail & Lantern Making

adult learners, eco therapy, health, mindfulness, national trust, nature therapy, north wales, solstice, wild food, winter, woodland

Celebrate This Ancient Apple Festival with your Family

Crackling fire, glowing lanterns, steaming hot mulled apple juice and merriment a-plenty for all the family! Celebrate a traditional Wassailing with us as we bless the fruit trees for a bountiful harvest. Let’s face it, January is a rubbish month when nothing much happens, but in villages up and down the country, around Old Twelfth Night, traditional Wassails are returning, so let’s bring some light and celebration to this time of year. Families with children of all ages are welcome to join us under our big parachute shelter at Park in the Past for an event which promises to be very special and magical with music, food and good company. “Wassail!”

Make a lantern with your family and join our procession to the orchard where you will learn about the tradition of wassailing and take part in the ceremony. We will be passing around the traditional wassail bowl filled to the brim with our secret winter-warming recipe, sharing slices of home-made apple cake and cooking up sticky toffee apple slices over the campfire. Come a-wassailing, as we sing-along to traditional songs of the season with live music provided by James’ mandolin.

Lea and James will be your guides to this traditional celebration as we gather under our huge parachute canopy and share the warmth of the winter fire.

Craft a paper lantern with your family
Enjoy hot mulled apple cider (non-alcoholic)
Traditional Wassailing ceremony – blessing of the trees
Cook up toffee apple slices on our blazing campfire
Join the lantern procession to the orchard
Share a sip from the wassail bowl & munch on apple cake
Sing-along with wassail songs; James will have his mandolin
Discover the ancient traditional of Wassailing & learn the history behind it

WHAT IS WASSAILING?

Wassailing refers to drinking (and singing) the health of trees in the hopes that they might better thrive. The purpose of wassailing is to awake the cider apple trees and to scare away evil spirits to ensure a good harvest of fruit in the autumn. The ceremonies of each Wassail vary from village to village but they generally all have the same core elements. A wassail King and Queen lead the song and procession to be played from one orchard to the next. This ancient British tradition is still very much thriving today.

Want to know what Wassailing is all about? Come along and find out what roles soggy toast, pots & pans and a child up a tree have to play in this ancient tradition. By wassailing the apple and pear trees we will be blessing them for a bountiful harvest next autumn. The old call will go out for “Hatfuls, capfuls, three bushel bagfuls and little heaps under the stairs!”

Event details

Date: Sat 11th Jan 2025

Time: 3:00 pm – 6:00 pm

Venue: Park in the Past

Cost: Family (up to 4) £35

Your Guides: James & Lea Kendall

James is the Head Bushcraft Instructor at Woodland Classroom, having worked in environmental education & conservation for over 10 years. James’ approach to teaching steers his students toward fostering a deeper connection with nature through understanding the landscape around us; “Bushcraft skills are an effective way to do this as we learn how to make use of natural materials and live lightly with the land, whilst also connecting with our own ancient past by seeing the land through the eyes of our ancestors.”

Lea is a qualified Counsellor and Mindfulness in a Woodland Setting practitioner. She is a firm believer in the power of nature to be therapeutic for everyone. Lea is an active forager, passionate about how we can use common plants for both food and medicine. She enjoys making her own tinctures and medicinal remedies for treating common ailments.

james and lea kendall - outdoor education tutors

Skills you will learn

Over the course of the evening you will experience a range of activities, including…

Nature Connection

Campfire Treats

Family Bushcraft

Ancestral Skills

Book now

Tickets are £35 for a family of up to 4 people. Additional family members are £5 each Additional children aged under 3 come free. You can read our Event Terms & Conditions here.

21 Dec

Woodland Winter Solstice

adult learners, eco therapy, health, mindfulness, national trust, nature therapy, north wales, solstice, wild food, winter, woodland

Celebrate a Magical Midwinter with your Family

Celebrate the Winter Solstice with us in the woods. Adults or families with children of all ages are welcome to join us at our sheltered fire circle hidden in the beautiful woodland of Park in the Past for an early evening session of solstice celebration around the campfire. We will start with a lantern-lit walk along the trail, across the river and into the woods where our crackling campfire will give us a warm and welcome light at the darkest time of the year. Our previous events have been amazing, and this year promises to be a very special and magical event with music, food and good company.

Be sure to wrap up well with appropriate clothing as old Jack Frost will be out and about.

“We can look back on our journey since Summer Solstice, to acknowledge what we have completed in this cycle, what we have experienced and what wisdom we have gained. It is also a moment to look forward, to name the new seeds and intentions we wish to take into the next cycle.” Glennie Kindred

Lea and James will be your guides as we gather under our huge parachute canopy and share the warmth of the midwinter fire.

We are hosting this session on two consecutive nights so if this date fills up, check out our event on Fri 20th Dec. UPDATE: Tickets for this evening are now SOLD OUT but you can still grab tickets for Fri 20th Dec HERE.

Lantern walk down the trails to the fire circle
Hot spiced apple cider (non-alcoholic)
Festive fireside storytelling
Wishing Tree
Gentle games for the kids; night-line, glow worm trail & more
Roasted chestnuts
Sing-along with seasonal songs; James will bring his mandolin
Light a candle of your own and make a wish for the coming year