~ The Enchanted Woods ~
"So they went off together.
But wherever they go, and whatever happens to them on the way,
in that enchanted place on
the top of the Forest a little boy and his bear will always be playing"
The House at Pooh Corner
~ A.A. Milne ~
In 1925 the Milne family moved
into a cottage at Cotchford Farm in Sussex, England. Many of the
Winnie the Pooh stories written
by A.A. Milne take place in a wooded area. This wooded area is
actually the beautiful Ashdown
Forest which is located in East Sussex, England which was near
the Milne family cottage and
where Christopher Robin spent much of his time. In this forest you
can still find all of the
Enchanted Places that Pooh and his friends loved so much. The Enchanted
Wood, Poohsticks Bridge, Eeyore's
Sad and Gloomy Place, Roo's Sandpit, the North Pole, Galleon's
Lap and The Hundred Acre Woods
can all be found in Ashdown Forest.
I hope someday to be able to
visit Ashdown Forest and all of the Enchanted Places that Christoper Robin
and Pooh played in. Until
then, I came across a site that has a wonderful virtual tour of "Pooh
Country".
"Being Enchanted its floor
was not like the floor of the Forest, gorse and bracken and heather but
close-set grass, quiet and smooth and green. It was the only place in the
Forest where you could sit down carelessly without getting up again almost
at once and looking for somewhere else. Sitting there they could see the
whole world spread out until it reached the sky, and whatever there was
all the world over was with them in Galleons Lap."
~ A.A. Milne ~
In 1979 The Conservators of
Ashdown Forest placed a
memorial dedicated to Milne
and Shepard in the forest.
The dedication reads:
"and by and by they came to
an enchanted place on
the very top of the forest
called Galleons Lap"
HERE AT GILLS LAP ARE COMMERATED
A.A. MILNE 1882 -1956
E.H. SHEPARD 1879 - 1976
WHO COLLABORATED IN THE CREATION
OF
"WINNIE THE POOH"
AND SO CAPTURED THE MAGIC
OF ASHDOWN FOREST
AND GAVE IT TO THE WORLD
~ Return to Pooh Corner ~
Christopher Robin and I walked
along
Under branches lit up by the
moon
Posing our questions to Owl
and Eeyore
As our days disappeared all
too soon
But I've wandered much further
today than I should
And I can't seem to find my
way back to the Wood
So help me if you can
I've got to get back
To the House at Pooh Corner
by one
You'd be surprised
There's so much to be done
Count all the bees in the
hive
Chase all the clouds from
the sky
Back to the days of Christopher
Robin and Pooh
Winnie the Pooh doesn't know
what to do
Got a honey jar stuck on his
nose
He came to me asking help
and advice
And from here no one knows
where he goes
So I sent him to ask of the
Owl if he's there
How to loosen a jar from the
nose of a bear
It's hard to explain how a
few precious things
Seem to follow throughout
all our lives
After all's said and done
I was watching my son
Sleeping there with my bear
by his side
So I tucked him in, I kissed
him and as I was going
I swear that the old bear
whispered
"Boy welcome home"
Believe me if you can
I've finally come back
To the House at Pooh Corner
by one
What do you know
There's so much to be done
Count all the bees in the
hive
Chase all the clouds from
the sky
Back to the days of Christopher
Robin
Back to the ways of Christopher
Robin
Back to the days of Pooh
Written and performed
by Kenny Loggins
© 1969,1994 MCA Music
Publishing,
a division of MCA Inc.
If you would like to learn
more about Ashdown
Forest, here are some very
informative sites:
Ashdown
Forest
The
Ashdown Forest Guide
Conservators
of Ashdown Forest
"You would need to be a brave explorer to venture into
the Five Hundred
Acre at night, and I never did."
The Enchanted
Places
~ Christopher
Milne ~
