The month started with a visit from the Plannng Inspectorate, to assess our latest appeal against the DNPA's enforcement notice. Later in the month the Inspector told us that he was considering handling our appeal on the basis that our structures are operational developments. This was news to us and the National Park, and we both disagreed, preferring to deal with just the land use issue.

Devon County Council's Voyager project brought a group of teenagers to the woods to learn outdoor survival skills. This is a pilot scheme, and we hope to do more with them in the future.

Ben organised the first Moreton's Moot, which around 25 people attended. The speaker had recently been involved in peace actions in Palestine, and she showed slides of roadblock removal, checkpoint actions and marches in the occupied territories; this was all followed by discussion and biscuits.

We held a coppicing and craft course, involving coppicing some of our hazel, then using it to build a bender at the Langford Environmental Education Project (LEEP) near Newton St Cyres.

We planted out an area of the growing area with young fruit trees - various varieties of apple, plum, gage and plum now sway in the wind beside the vegetable beds.

The Woodland Walk got a spring makeover with new wooden waymarkers and signs appearing along the paths. The map board on the railway track was also replaced - the old one was damaged in the February storms. Merlin and Cheryll completed their 72hr Permaculture Design courses, finishing with a presentation on a design for a piece of land near Ide. They both passed and received Design Certificates. The Spring Permaculture Convergence in Plymouth saw us giving a workshop , swapping seeds and learning about tree grafting.

An oak tree was planted at the top of the woods in memory of Harry Pryke, who visited us last year. His mother read one of his poem about Dartmoor, and sunshine blessed the ceremony as his relatives planted the oak.

We had the first of our longer term summer visitors as Jeff, a trainee Church Army minister from Sheffield, came to stay for 3 weeks. He quickly became a part of the community, got stuck into woodland life, and warmed up the guest bender for another season.