Hi there. I'm Jol and I came into stewardship of these woods in 2023, a dream to connect with nature, to escape town, to get off grid. It's slow time, getting to know the woods, the movements in nature, the people. And a huge learning curve. My vision is to create a place where people can learn and connect, getting out of life's bustle and busy-ness to find some tranquility, a chance to share, learn and chill with others.

My working life has taken me from the NHS in Norfolk (where I worked in health education) to the tropical islands of Vanuatu, where I spent three years working with local doctors, nurses and community workers, running training courses in all sorts of remote places. I lived in Germany for 10 years, running a dance business and teaching English. In the UK I've run national charities, set up a community centre in Swindon, helped start-up businesses, and set up support for asylum seekers.

Music has been my big passion for a long, long time - I play guitar, write songs and sing. I help organise and run music festivals - we've started one in the local village of Pentre-bach: May Fest at the Shoemakers, the last weekend of May.

Out of all that came the idea of Woodsong Wales - weekend retreats in the woods.

You can read more about the woods themselves on the Woodland Wales page. My aim is to use woodland management practices to create a space where different tree types grow happily together, creating a habitat that birds, mammals and all those little bugs and flowers love too. We're building on a system called continuous cover forestry (CCF), which aims to maximise natural processes - and avoids any clear-felling. More coming soon.

Please do get in touch if you're interested in joining a retreat, coming along for a taster, getting involved or have an idea you'd like to put into practice. I'd love to hear from you.

Image by M Rizal @Vecteezy