Ashdown Forest, inspiration for Pooh’s Hundred Acre Wood, burns Posted on 30 April 2019 Tags:Ashdown Forest, Hundred Acre Wood, Winnie the Pooh Just as AA Milne’s beloved character Winnie the Pooh was inspired by a real bear, The Hundred Acre Wood (home to Pooh, Piglet, Owl, Tigger, Eeyore, Kanga and Roo) was inspired by a real forest. A large section of Ashdown Forest (near Milne’s home in Sussex, about 55km southwest of London), which stirred the writer’s imagination has burnt. A fire broke out at Ashdown Forest on Sunday night and was reported at 9:30pm. Six fire crews arrived on the scene shortly thereafter. The team was later reduced to four fire engines and crews, which managed to douse the blaze in the early hours of Monday, 29 April. The fire razed 20-hectares of forest in Sussex County. According to a report from the BBC, Andrew Gausden from the fire service said, ‘The undergrowth was very dry in the forest, despite the recent rain, and the fire caught quite quickly.’ Ashdown Forest. Two separate lines of fire a mile away- two separate ignition points? But Hundred acre wood safe and untouched. Eeyore’s place possibly a bit singed. Damage this am not as bad as expected – great job by the Firefighters. pic.twitter.com/BnmGVgPaxh — Nick (@Schenzey) April 29, 2019 The fire destroyed vegetation in a valley near Duddleswell, and although it is unusual to have a fire in the woods in England at night, no foul play is suspected. Speaking to the BBC, Ashdown Forest ranger Chris Sutten said that ‘ground-nesting birds would have seen eggs and nests destroyed. The forest is an important habitat for nightjars and Dartford warblers. Reptiles like adders and lizards would not have been able to move fast enough. Large animals like foxes and deer would have been able to move out of the area quite quickly.’ Mr Sutton also noted that within four weeks the grass will be growing once more and in six months time it won’t be obvious that there was a fire. Ashdown Forest Fire – Pete’s arrived at scene @pete_Abel @Sussex_Fire_999 @EastSussexFRS @bbcsoutheast @Eastbournenews @brightonargus pic.twitter.com/qIE2yKg3xy — eddie mitchell (@brightonsnapper) April 29, 2019 Ashdown Forest Drone (with permission of course) pic.twitter.com/tr8mTMCSyN — eddie mitchell (@brightonsnapper) April 29, 2019 AA Milne published the first Winnie the Pooh book on 14 October 1926 while living in the area, near Hartfield. While there are no obvious signs of Pooh in the forest, people do visit and take photos of themselves playing Poohsticks or searching for the North Pole. Tourists also head to Pooh Corner, in Hartfield, where the Piglet Tearoom serves Pooh Bear-shaped toast, honey (of course) and other treats – and you can buy oodles of Winnie-the-Pooh-related paraphernalia. View this post on Instagram When you find out that Piglet’s Tearoom sells Winnie the Pooh shaped toast… 🐻🐝 We’ve got such a busy couple of weeks coming up (I’m off work next week, yay!), so we decided to have a relaxing weekend in West Kent with @stuart.masterson’s grandparents. 🏠 We headed back to Ashdown Forest for lunch as it’s only 20 minutes drive from their house and I finally got to try the Winnie the Pooh toast. It costs £1.60 which is absolutely fantastic for such a themed cafe. 🎉 3 trips to Ashdown Forest this year so far… I think I’ve found my favourite place in the UK. 🇬🇧 A post shared by Kat Last | Travel Blogger 🌎💙 (@kat_last) on Jul 9, 2018 at 12:50pm PDT View this post on Instagram We went to Pooh Corner today, played Pooh Sticks on the actual Pooh sticks bridge (I won twice!) we saw an Eeyore house and we found the memorial to AA Milne. It’s in a lovely spot overlooking the countryside where he lived and wrote his stories about his son Christopher Robin and his toys.. #aamilne #poohcorner #poohcornerhartfield #pigletstearoom #ashdownforest A post shared by Sarah Bennett (@sarahbennett77) on Aug 27, 2018 at 9:48am PDT Featured image: Eddie Mitchell /Twitter Related Posts Cape Town’s sustainability: Leading the way in environmental initiatives 1 June 2023 As National Environmental Month commences in South Africa, Cape Town stands proudly at the forefront... read more Kapama to host Safari Guide of the Year Awards 2023 1 June 2023 Kapama Private Game Reserve near Hoedspruit will host this year’s Safari Guide of the Year... read more Blood Lions relaunches for public viewing on YouTube 1 June 2023 Award-winning documentary feature film Blood Lions has been relaunched on YouTube for public viewing, creating... read more PREV ARTICLE NEXT ARTICLE
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