There’s wood everywhere you look at Le Rhun – and that’s good because we like natural products, and you can’t get much more natural than that.
A lot of our land is woodland, and every year we get a visit from the fairies who set up their own Fairy Glade. No one ever sees them, but we know they’ve been there by the doors on their trees, their washing on the line, and their toadstool meeting circle at the entrance to the glade.
Some say that they even carved their toadstools out of Le Rhun wood.
If you look closely around the gites you’ll see more wood. We have lots of wooden carvings, carefully and lovingly created by two skilled chainsaw carvers, who visited Le Rhun several years ago. Look carefully and you’ll find owls, a deer, a badger, a mole, a woodpecker and lots more besides. How many can you spot? They really are a work of art. And all from Le Rhun wood!
Our centrepiece here is our 1920’s barn where we host our events, crepe nights and musical evenings. And guess what? It’s all made from wood.
Of course, trees have their life cycles, and when they get to a certain stage we need to manage them. Our gites use seasoned Le Rhun wood in their log burners, our rustic fences are made of branches, we have tree stumps as steps and seats and the mulch in our gardens and the wood chippings on our paths all comes from wood. It really is good!
It’s good to see that traditional craftsmanship is still alive, and holidaymakers to Le Rhun should make sure to visit the Living Museum of Traditional Trades in the centre of Argol. It’s a fascinating working museum where the skills of yesteryear are kept alive. The demonstrations include tailoring, basket making, bee-keeping, weaving, cider making, and of course wood working.
Sadly, some of our trees were uprooted in last winter’s Storm Ciaran, and we are making sure that the trees that we lost are recycled in some way. We are working with a local carpenter or ‘menusier’ who is helping us deal with the fallen trees and turn the bad of the storm into something good. Using a chainsaw planking guide, we are carefully slicing the fallen trunks into planks which will be taken off site. It’s then left to season and allowed to dry. Once they are dry, a process which will take up to 5 years, the planks will be planed flat and turned into beautiful furniture.