We are a not for profit community interest company that provide outdoor woodland spaces for both past and present British military and emergency service personnel.
We are called Military & Emergency Services Help CIC or MESH for short. We believe that spending time in the great outdoors provides a significant benefit to your wellbeing both mentally and physically. If you have served, or are serving, in our Armed forces, Fire and rescue, Police force or Ambulance Service and would like to spend some time in one of our woodland locations, this is right up your street.
About MESH
Who
The MESH woodlands are for use by our service personal and their families during and after their active duty.
Military – Fire – Ambulance – Police
What
Spending time in the great outdoors provides a significant benefit to your well being both mentally and physically.
Where
We currently have a site in Bristol near the airport. We are looking for new sites around the south.
When
We meet on the second Saturday each month in Bristol. Keep an eye on our events section and Facebook page for additional dates.
Meeting Dates
No event found
Family Time
We encourage you to bring your friends and family along to the woods. Quality time with friends and family is
Wood Store
This weekend we made a wood store from an old piece of canvas and then moved our log pile into
May Meeting
Setting up at Decoy Woods is almost complete. At the next meeting we are very luck to have bush craft
Our Milestones
If you have served, or are currently serving, in the Fire Service, Police Force, Ambulance Service or any of the Military branches then you are a member of our services and therefore welcome to come and join us in one of our woodlands.
We meet once a month to enjoy the great outdoors. We use qualified and experienced Bush craft / Wilderness living skills instructors and we practice bush craft skills and wild camping. Whether you are a complete beginner or a seasoned veteran there is always something for you to learn or practice at every meeting. We encourage those who attend to bring along their spouses/partners and, if you have them, the kids too.
If you are a member or a former member of the Military or the 3 Emergency Services then we will not ask you for any fees, we believe that by serving your country you have already paid in full.
We will occasionally run Bush Craft / Wilderness skills courses to aid with fund raising for our running costs; these will be booked in advance and are separate to our MESH meetings.
If you have a team that would like to book a wilderness course or event please do get in touch.
Each meeting will have a theme for the weekend such as “percussion fire lighting and wood carving.” Or “foraging skills and Shelter building” The format will consist of meeting up on a Saturday morning with your wilderness instructor and the rest of the crowd, setting up your shelter or tent, for those who are staying for an optional overnight camp. And then gathering under the parachute for a cup of tea and start some guided skills sessions. You are then free to practice your bush craft skills.
The whole day is very fluid and relaxed, you may participate as much or as little as you like.
There is always a camp fire on the go. Feel free to use the fire to cook your food or grab some boiling water from the kettle.
When evening comes nothing feels better than sitting around the fire and having a good old laugh and giggle with like minded people, followed by a night under the stars and a hearty breakfast in the morning.
We have approximately 10 acres of woodland within Wrington Warren woods, near Bristol airport.
We have our own communal area with a fire pit and seating situated underneath an old military heavy drop parachute to keep the elements off. We also have on site toilet facilities (bring your own loo roll) and parking too.
We do not have any running water or electricity. You will need to bring all that you need for the duration of your stay. Full bottles and fully charged batteries are a must.
We always aim to have a qualified instructor on hand whenever we meet. These are all volunteers who have a wealth of experience. They generously give up their time to help us make some unforgettable outdoor experiences.
Food and water
Please bring enough food and water for your visit, we sometimes have a communal evening meal in the form of a BBQ or a range stew, if you would like to join in we may ask for a small donation to cover the costs, please see our Facebook page for details closer to each event.
Clothing
Please dress according to the season, as a minimum we suggest spare warm clothing and waterproof outer layers.(it is Britain after all). Better to have too much warm clothing than not enough.
Camping equipment
You can make yourself as comfortable as you like, for those who want rough it under the stars with a tarp or a hammock or a tent there is ample space to do it all.
You can bring as much camping equipment as you like, car parking is on the site so you will not have very far to carry your equipment.
Knives and tools
We suggest that you bring your own knives and bush craft tools along with you, please be mindful of blade safety when you are on the site, if you are unsure about blade safety please speak to one of the team and we will be happy to offer advice.
First aid kit
Although we have a central trauma medical kit, we advise everyone who attends to carry a small first aid kit for minor scratches and scrapes, antiseptic and Elastoplast as a minimum.
Mobile Phones
The mobile phone signal tends to come and go on the site. Think of it as an opportunity for a bit of a digital detox.
Hat stand
Open fire cooking
Fire side
Take a pew
Sitting on a stump with a hot drink
Ivy
Sunset in the woods
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Call us on 01980 653 749. Please ask for Jason.