My Woodlarks Journey began with a cup of coffee. Whilst traveling home to the New Forest from the Black Country I stopped for a coffee with Pat. Her lounge was stacked from floor to waist high with boxes of food for Pathfinders Camp at Woodlarks. The following Saturday found me going up the drive at Woodlarks for the first time rather than packing a suitcase for a works trip to China.

Having survived most of that first week when the then Warden asked “would I be back ?“ and my response being a shoulder shrug. The Wardens response was “I think you will be back“. Neither of us could have seen the number of visits made over the next 35 years and counting.

Having done 10 Pathfinders camps I was asked to join a second camp as a Pool Lifeguard. Arriving Monday lunchtime and finding the kitchen empty I found half of Woodlarks Campsite looking for the camp having lunch in the woods.

In addition to attending 5 camps this year (all by invitation of the camp leader) I join in working parties; engineering week & Santa's Grotto preparation and attend as a technical elf.

In addition to Woodlarks activities I am an elder with my local United Reformed Church and drive minibuses for a local Community First organisation regularly taking people to Lunch Club and shopping as well as taking groups to local and not so local attractions as day trips.