Green Holidays

Your actions alone can make the countryside a better place for yourself and others.

By sharing your adventures – I don’t mean inviting other people along to your picnics, dog walks or countryside rambles – I mean allowing them to have as much fun as your yourself would expect.

Your actions can directly affect other people who are within a few feet or even a few miles of you while you are outdoors – but they can also affect people who follow in your footsteps a few weeks or even a few years after you.

How you may wonder? But it is all quite simple.

The Countryside Shop:
Every inch of the countryside is owned and managed by someone. Whether it is a private landowner, a charitable body or your local council – someone is looking after the land and using it or maintaining it according to their needs.

You are however, permitted to walk through their land, fields, forests, glades and even gardens on footpaths (or for a small fee) if they are on a footpath, bridleway or other right of way. But you are only a visitor.

Imagine the countryside as you would a high street shop. You are allowed in – even welcomed in – but there are unspoken ‘rules’ – like a society code. For example you can just go in and break things, scream and shout, play loud music, drop litter, let your dog run wild, allow your kids to climb on display areas or run into ‘private’ areas or eat their food and scare of other customers.

Yet people do this in the countryside all the time.

What Happened Next?
Well, firstly in this shop – you would be seriously affecting their profits – and just like any business they react to problems and can’t afford to lose money.

But how can they make money if you are scaring off their other customers and have left the shop in such a state that they have actually spend money to fix things and replace broken stock. However, some things are irreplacable – so they may never have them in the shop again.

And secondly, they may well introduce a few rules to make sure that these things don’t happen again, like not allowing children or dogs, closing off certain areas at certain times, charging people to go in to get some money back and changing what they sell.

In the same way, landowners who suffer from vandalism, injured livestock and crop damage may put up extra fencing and funnel the ‘humans’ down a thin footpath rather than allowing them free access to the land.

photo credit: Crystian Cruz

Other Changes:
They may also be forced to lock gates, block entrances to farms and other buildings that aren’t actually on the footpath but were a beauty or were of great interest to walkers like yourself.

They may have to introduce entrance fees to car parks or other areas to re-coup some of their lost funds – which you will have to start paying if you want to visit the area – or maybe close off the ‘free parking’ that they had allowed on their land until all the rubbish that was dumped their was costing too much to have removed!

And damage to certain rare plants or wildlife species may be too much for that species to survive there anymore – so it will be lost forever just becasue you wanted to take that unusual plant home with you!

So noise and vandalism can affect more than just other walkers on that day – and carelessness, selfish actions and laziness can change the very landscape we love over time.

The countryside can’t keep going in its current state if we don’t do everything we can to preserve or improve it. If landowners can only run their business by shutting out humans – then that is just what they will have to do!

Buying a dog can be one of the best experiences for a family or individual – but take care!

It’s not just about buying from a reputable breeder, or making sure that it is vaccinated and wormed – it’s about what that dog can do for you – or what it can never do.

For example – if your dog is prone to skin problems and needs cream applied, you can’t take it for water-filled days out. If it get out of breath quickly with its short ‘bulldog’ face – you can’t go cycling with it or for long walks with it – or take it anywhere that it might get too hot!

And if it is prone to digestive upsets, takes certain medicines every 6 hours, has sore joints, patches of fur missing or can’t stop scratching – how much fun is he going be when you take him on holiday with you?

Your Dog Breed:
Some dog breeds are just the wrong shape to be outdoor active pets – for example any dog with a very short nose, dogs which are longer than they are tall, dogs with really droopy skin and dogs that have no fur!

photo credit: Jen and a Camera

Most dogs like this will have some sort of problems when you take them out over their lifetime. Now I am not saying that dogs with normal faces and skin won’t suffer from problems – I’m saying that these types probably will.

So if you want to run, swim, cycle, climb and basically spend hours out in the sunshine (and rain) with your dog – then think about getting a hardy average-shaped breed – like a pointer/retriever/terrier type. And avoid Great Danes, Bassett Hounds and Pugs!

Extra Un-Green:
In addition to choosing a dog that suits your lifestyle – you will also be choosing a dog that demands less from the environment.

For example, endless trips to the vets, tablets, treatments, therapies and operations can’t reduce your eco footprint can they? Even if you are insured (which I recommend) that only covers the money for treatment, it doesn’t buy carbon credits for all the fuel and chemicals you will be using!

Dogs which need extra grooming and clipping add to their footprints too – as well as dogs that have to be on special diets.

But, if you want a pet dog that can enjoy the outdoors as much as your – then consider all these things, and plan for the dogs lifespan (10-20 years).

They might not have any problems when they are young, but they will soon catch up with them as they mature.

If you lost your dog on holiday – what could you do to get it back?

When you are in a new area – you may not know about the local vets, rescue centres or capture policy for ‘found’ pets.

And you really should!

Needless to say, if there was a simple and fast service available that did all the searching for you; shouldn’t you know about it?

Obviously not all countries offer such services – but if there was one available where you were heading – shouldn’t you really be signing up? Otherwise how would you find your lost dog?

Pet Finding Procedure:
Generally, if someone loses a pet like a dog, they would start by calling a few local vets and rescue centres locally, leaving details with everyone about their dog.

They may also contact other local services like pet stores to take their details – possible enlisting people to start travelling around looking for the animal.

And all this costs money and uses other people resources. The owner may just be making phone calls, but it is the charities that are using up time and money keeping records of all these details.

photo credit: ToniProtto

On average my local pet rescue centre gets 3 or 4 calls every day with people looking for their lost dogs and other pets. And each call takes at least 10 minutes of (volunteered) time, as well as ink and paper to record the details.

And if you multiply that up by all the other people that are called up about the same pet – and all the lost pets in a month – this can get quite costly.

But What If You Are Lost Too?
This is the standard route for someone living at home – but what if you were travelling and you were in a new town or city. Would you know which companies to call to help you? Would you even know where you were to say where your dog was last seen?

And – what is the standard procedure for finding dog owners? Some countries use microchips, some use tattoes and others give you 7 days to find your own dog in a Lost Dog Shelter – otherwise it is simply rehomed!

That is why it is worth knowing what happens to pets in the areas you are visiting – or finding someone who does!

The Experts:
There are several companies available now who know all the local vets to any given address in an instant.

Once your dog has been reported to them, they will alert all relevant centres and vets as to the description and contact details of you and your dog. You don’t need to worry about a thing.

Having built up a relationship with all these vets and centres, their faxes and texts are treated as urgent rather than as routine. So if your dog has been handed in to anyone on their contact list – you will have a result in no time!

No wasted calls, no endless reciting of your details and dogs description – just one call and then you can focus on looking for your dog rather than on the phone!

So I think it is best practice to make sure you find out about these companies before you head off on your green holidays – rather than wasting resources after the event!

This is where the phrase ‘Leave it to the Experts’ rings true!

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Did you know that it is illegal in the UK for you to take a close-up photo of a baby barn owl?

This little known law is part of the Wildlife & Countryside Act (1981) where there is a list of species that receive full protection of the law – and this protection includes reducing the disturbance of the nesting young or recently fledged young of all the species on it – and this includes Barn Owls.

It also includes other seemingly random species such as Brambling, Fieldfare, Firecrest, Kingfisher, Bewick’s Swan and even the little Crested Tit!

All these species are among the 80+ protected wild bird species that frequent the UK, which can be native or just passing through.

There is, of course, already a law to protect all wildbirds from being intentionally injured, killed or taken from the wild – and the same goes for their eggs – but there are some exceptions.

In the case of the Barn Owl and the Kingfisher – they are for greater protection; whereas in the case of the Mallard or Woodcock – it means lesser protection at certain times!

photo credit: U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service – Northeast Region

These schedules also cater for captive-bred ‘wild bird’ species such as birds of prey and other more common species such as Magpies, Blackbirds and Goldfinches. And also the sale of wildbirds that have been killed legally and the rehabilitation of injured birds.

Game birds are not covered by these particualar laws however, but are covered under the separate Game Bird Act, which fully protects them outside of the Open Season.

The Bird Schedules:
There are 4 such catagories (which may have several parts) which cover those endangered birds to be protected as well as those species which can be killed or sold, and they lay out as follows:

Schedule 1: Full protection at all times (or during the close season for a specific 4 species). To get close to young, nesting or breeding birds in this list – you will need a licence (or you can visit them in specific reserves).

Schedule 2: Birds which may be killed or taken outside of the close season only – but not sold – basically to be killed to protect crops or other interests or to be killed for food or for sale as per Schedule 3.

Schedule 3: Birds which may be sold; either dead at specific times, or alive if captive bred and legally ringed. These include certain ducks and wood pidgeons to be sold dead; and siskins, song thrushes and other ‘garden’ birds that can be kept as ‘pets’ and displayed at bird shows.

Schedule 4: Captive Bred birds which must be registered and ringed if in captivity (mainly raptors). These birds need to be registered and you must have genuine proof of breeding and hatching. If you find an injured bird that happens to be listed on Schedule 4 – even if you intend to re-release it shortly – you should inform the appropriate authority as they may need to be registered.

photo credit: luc.viatour

Your Actions:
So next time you see the opportunity to photograph any nesting bird – think about what that means.

If they have made a law that specifically prevents human from getting close enough to a Schedule 1 species – as it would disturb them – think again for all birds and other wildlife!

If they think that getting that close could prevent birds from nesting at all or may make them to abandon existing young – then what harm are you doing being that close to any species?

Even with the fantastic zooms on cameras these days – you still have to be quite close to get a great shot – so what if you got a great shot of a nest, but after you left all the young starved to death after you had scared the parents off!

When trying to film or photograph nesting birds – or any birds really – it is best to set up a hide (or use one at a reserve). Birds get used to them and so aren’t so affected by all the keen photographers snapping away at them. And some reserves set up hides to be really close to the action just for this reason.

So, if you are going to enter a photgraphic competition with your nest shot – make sure it’s not a Schedule 1 species – otherwise they may ask to see your licence………. and I’m sure you don’t want the associated £5000 fine and accompanying prison sentence instead of first prize!

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It’s not just your home that can be green this spring – your pony can too!

In case you were wanting to spend every sunny day this month at your local yard – here are some eco friendly tips to share with your friends there – and maybe they can let you know some of theirs!

So, here are 10 simple tips for a greener stable. Some will save you money (and resources) on replacement items and other handy tips for making green products:

1) Don’t Lose It- Tie some brightly colored fibres or an old pink shoelace to your hoof-pick to avoid losing it in your bedding or long grass!  And this will save you valuable time.

2) Reuse It – Make yourself a replacement food scoop out of an old drinks bottle, by diagonally cutting off the bottom and using the ‘neck’ as the handle.  Taking the lid off will allow you to use it as a funnel as well.

3) Replace It – Use your old washing up bowl for handy things around the yard; food bowl, saddle soap dish or even pony toy for the field!  The same obviously goes for a few other household items and it saves throwing unwanted plastic out.

4) Keep It’s Shape – Use the lid of your old saddle soap tins as bridle hooks – to help them keep their shape while hanging on the stable wall waiting for the next ride!

5) But Before That – Save up all the leftover bits of saddle soap you can’t use properly in the past few tins, then gently heat them into a joint splodge – and they are saved!  Much easier to use as one great big lump!

6) Bags Of Poo – Bag up your old horse droppings after they have been on the muck heap for a while and sell them to local gardeners or allotments.  Keep it low on straw and other bedding though for the best price.

7) Bags Of Hay- Rather than buy new haynets – why not make your own out of baler twine from the hay bales. A net of about 24 twines is enough – and the smaller the holes, the slower the horse can eat from it.

8.) Spare Twine – If you need a new lead rope for the yard, why waste the clip? Just plait up some baler twine and just tie it to the old clip.  Valuable metal will be saved!

9) Save Washing- If you use black or brown jodhpurs for everyday use, you won’t need to wash them so often – therefore saving water, suds and no doubt extending the life of the trousers.

10) A New Rug – If that old sleeping bag of yours is no longer needed – why not make it into a horse rug with just a bit of your handiwork! Cut out the neck section and tie on some chest straps!

Hope these have been of some help – and maybe they have made you think of something else too!

Let us know if you have a great tip for the yard – and if your friends don’t want to save their old saddle soap or lead rope clips – then make sure you let them know you will find them a new home!

It sounds like it’s just saving money – but it really is saving resources and reducing waste.

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There are up to 5 million elderly people in the UK who don’t have and family or friends to visit them according to the UK charity Help the Aged.

And how much trouble would it be to you to help them out a bit in the cold weather, visit them every so often or drive them to the Drs if they needed a flu jab!

Depending on where you live and how many neighbours you have, you could help out an awful lot of people with very little effort – making everyone’s life a little better!

Why not try to make something that your village or neighbourhood can be proud of – and that stops your neighbours being isolated in their own homes.  I mean, if they aren’t very mobile the lady 2 doors down from you could have been sitting alone in her sitting room every evening for a whole week while you are just a few metres away watching a DVD or playing computer games.

What You Can Do:
Here are some ideas of things that you could do to help your local community, ranging from a tiny effort to a full on adventure!

Make A Cake – Taking around some tasty cakes or a hot dinner to a neighbour could really cheer up their day – and give them something to talk about!

Take The Lead- How about offering to take an elderly persons dog out for a walk for or with them.  Dogs and cats offer a real companionship to people living alone, but they can sometimes need more care than people can offer them – so why not step in.

Play Cards – Think about spending a few hours around someones house doing something that they like.  Rather than watch another episode of something-or-other, why not try to improve you gaming skill the old-fashioned way!

Home Delivery! – Getting out to the shops for the heavier items – like tinned food and cat litter can be quite daunting for a single elderly person to consider, and they may need to make several trips back and forth to get their normal groceries as well.  So why not offer to make a regular trip on their behalf when you get your own shopping?

Become A Taxi – Local bus services are great for people to do a bit of clothes shopping or nip into the Bank, but when you need to get to an early Dr’s appointment, or you end up getting stuck at the hospital longer than expected – how can the bus help you then?

Find Some Numbers – Why not put together a list of numbers and information that could be useful to someone on their own and give one to every home in your areas.  It can include things like the numbers and events for local day centres, meals on wheels type organisations, and even emergency plumbers and other services (that you know offer excellent services and a fair price).

Include local bus times and locations of bus stops, local taxis, local stores, the numbers of neighbours with certain skills or spare time, and even government details on available grants and services free to certain individuals.

Start Something New – If you really want to get your teeth into something really special for all those single, lonely and elderly people out there by arranging for your own regular ‘coffee morning’ or day centre.

I’m sure that you could find a church hall, community centre or local school that had a free spare room every other Tuesday or whatever you fancied.  And I’m sure that getting together a few volunteers to help out won’t be too hard either.

Imagine the looks on their little faces!

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It’s snowing again! Will it ever stop?

Well, welcome back to Green Holidays and to another blog carnival for a great collection of articles.

So, lets start with every travelers tip of what and what not to eat with a useful guide to eating abroad with Should You Order The Hollandaise Sauce?.

And if you are thinking of having a great spring clean in the next few weeks and don’t want to just throw out your stuff, read these tips for passing on your unwanted goods and having a great day out too! So have a peek at Car Boot Sale Tips!.

Here’s a quick article on the importance of the Argentinian Tango: Save The Tango!

And another on green products that you might need in the cold!!!! So, take a look at How The Olympics is Going Green! | Guffly

And if you are thinking of taking the family dog on your green adventures but they suffer from travel sickness, have a look at these tips to make your journey better and your family complete with Do You Have A Travel Sick Dog?

So, enjoy your trips – and enjoy planning them!!!!!

Dogs love to chase, dig and run – so should we really let them into sensitive wild places?

Having been a dog owner for many many years myself I would love to say ‘yes’ – but having also been interested in wildlife and habitat management – it could just as well be a ‘no’.

The reason I think is because of the owner, not the dogs!  So make sure you consider the impacts of your little furry friends before letting them loose with wildlife!

Dogs In The Countryside:
Dogs have been designed by nature to run and run, and chase anything that moves.  So as long as they have been encouraged to run and run with other dogs only – and to chase only balls and toys – then feel free to let them loose over fields and valleys.

There is nothing better I think for the owner and the dog to have a really great run through different habitats, across streams, sniffing what has passed before and enjoying the sunshine.

And if your dog is ‘under control’ you can cross fields of livestock and wander through deer-friendly environments.  However, many people think that ‘under control’ means that at some point and sometimes after lots of shouting that their dog comes back to them – usually at the car!

However, under control should be taken to mean that at your instant recall, your dog stops whatever it is doing and returns to you immediately if you ask it.

If this isn’t the case, then the only way to have your dog under control is to keep it on the lead.  But unfortunately, people see this as ‘unfair’ rather than thinking that they could well have simply trained their dog to respond to commands then it would be safe off the lead.

Effects On Wildlife:
Dogs are all friendly and cuddly to us humans – but don’t forget that they are capable of sniffing out, chasing and even killing wildlife such as rabbits, birds and deer.

Just by letting your dog loose in a woodland, you could be responsible for lowering numbers of rare ground nesting birds, causing a deer to injure itself bolting away, scaring off shy species from breeding in the area and even spreading common diseases to wild mammals.

There is also the problem of dog feces as well.  As dogs are carnivores their waste products are not of any benefit to the wildlife, and can take a lot longer to decompose as a result.  They could also contain bacteria and worms too which are of no benefit to the environment or other dogs passing through.

Vegetarian stools (from cattle, horses, sheep and deer etc) are more natural as they only contain partly digested plant matter, and so they are easily absorbed back into the food chain by bugs, insects and earthworms.

Alternatives:
Maybe we should be getting our local councils to allocate large areas that are not wildlife sensitive for our dogs to play in in complete safety and without worry.

A huge fenced in area with woods, large grassed areas and plenty of doggy bins could be the best thing for local pet owners.  This would mean that there was always a safe place to let your dog run around to burn off that energy, a place to play with other dogs and people and no adverse effects on wildlife!

Who is your local councillor? – And what are they doing to help dog owners?

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What great weather we have been having – and the kids are raring to get outside for some adventures….

…..and so are the grown-ups!

Here we have some more offerings for your green adventures this month:

Amy @ The Q Family start us of again with a story of some great locations they have found closer to home with: 5 Family Favorite Outdoor Adventures Around Atlanta.

Ed Biado comes up next with some great tips for anyone planning their next trip with his notes on The green traveler

Saving money on your next road trip – or just around town is covered by Tyler, who explains his new concept of using the car! Take a peak at Save $550 a Year by Hypermiling and see what you think yourself!

Next we have the thoughtful Marjorie Morgan who takes time to explain about wildlife skills and how to manage without all the mod cons we get so used to at home. Even in your local woods – you should really know the basics, so read Wilderness and Urban Survival Skills for a taster.

Gregory E. Rouse has written a short article on a particular location, but his blog is certainly one to read more about as it covers all sorts of outdoor adventures including this one about Beehive Lake.

Along a similar note, Henry Carlson takes us into one part of his personal journey in Finding Freedom: Monteverde Waterfall along his way.

Almost last, we have Pete giving us some tips for a great local day out in the warmer weather with Cool Things To Do On Hot Days, and then we have Matt Shaulis giving us some further ‘tent’ tips for all those who love the outdoors! Take a peak at his rather thorough Lightweight Northwest Territory Tents or 4 Season Kelty Tents? article if that is what you fancy!

Take care out there!

Set in the vast forests outside of Stockholm, near the Malingsbo-klotens Nature Reserve, is the amazing Kolarbyn natural eco resort.  This eco resort will truly take you back to nature – but you may actually pass it by!

What Makes It ‘Eco’?
It is so low impact it is virtually part of the forest!  All natural and local materials are used and accommodation was made by and run by local people.

All the food is produced by local farmers, and the huts belong to the entire community.  All the tours help to preserve the native wildlife and cultural traditions are preserved as a result.

They reduce, reuse and recycle almost everything at the location – and probably give more to the environment than take things away!

What Can You Do There?
The wildlife is the main draw here, and there is plenty of it.  Set in the heart of a woodland you will no doubt see a variety of birds and mammals here.  So take your best camera!

Many of the staff are avid wildlife watchers and will no doubt be able to answer all your questions about the creatures and the natural environment too.

Tours include horseback wolf-watching, beaver trails, moose safaris and much, much more.  There are even night-time wolf howling tours and ‘midnight sun’ evening safaris!

The Accommodation:
The resort is made up of 12 huts – most of which don’t even look like accommodation! They are covered in vegetation and surrounded by trees!  All you can see is the chimney and the doorway.

There are no perks in the rooms or mod cons – it is all very much back to basics – so don’t expect to plug in your hair dryer in your room!  However do expect a cosy sheep-skin rugs and blankets and a baking hot log-fire in your room – as well as nature on your doorstep and the sound of moose outside!

You fetch your own fresh water from the local spring, chop your own wood for your fire and cook fresh caught fish in the basic outdoor kitchen.

Anything Else?
Well, the wildlife!  You can walk through the woods here and see moose, wolves, lynx and even brown bears!  A nature-watchers dream.

You can volunteer to work here too.  Imagine all this beauty for free – well to help out here in this pristine environment and helping others to enjoy it too!

It also works in association with Naturens Basta (Nature’s Best) – a selection of Sweden’s best nature tours – AND the WWF of all people.  They are actively passing on a contribution from your fees and tours to the Skandulv Wolf conservation project working close by. 

Amazing.