Checking on Medusa: A Slippery Slope to the Ancient Oak

Caught on Greenhow Bank in a shower and finding myself taking more time than anticipated, I decided to take a shortcut by descending the bank directissimo, which led me to a spot above Medusa.

My thought I would pay a visit to the old gorgon to check on her well-being. The descent was nothing short of heart-pounding, as I manoeuvred through the dense coniferous trees. At one point, I slid down on my derrière, almost passing by the enormous split boulder through which the ancient oak had managed to force its way. A vague memory of doing this before: history on repeat. Fortunately, the monster remained dormant, and I could peer into her eyes without the dread of being transformed into stone.

Medusa, as the local forestry workers affectionately call her, is an ancient oak tree that has grown within a cleft in a large rock. The Woodland Trust, in its inventory of ancient trees, records the tree’s circumference as six metres¹‘Tree – Ancient Tree Inventory’. 2014. Woodlandtrust.org.uk <https://ati.woodlandtrust.org.uk/tree-search/tree?treeid=13355&from=3523&v=2376528&ml=map&z=16&nwLat=54.424554885484525&nwLng=-1.085349994390663&seLat=54.41882454674354&seLng=-1.0591716344053115#/> [accessed 26 September 2023]. From what I’ve read, this would roughly put her age at around 250 years. To put that into historical context, this would place her germination during the reign of George III, ‘Mad King George’.

Typically, a tree’s girth serves as a gauge for estimating its age. However, when vying for resources amidst a cluster of trees, a tree may grow taller with a slimmer trunk. Naturally, we can’t ascertain the exact nature of the surrounding vegetation during her prime years. Nonetheless, by all accounts, the age estimate of 250 years appears quite conservative.

The ancient tree appears to be thriving, with a bountiful canopy adorned with numerous leaves, albeit with a few dead broughs.

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  ‘Tree – Ancient Tree Inventory’. 2014. Woodlandtrust.org.uk <https://ati.woodlandtrust.org.uk/tree-search/tree?treeid=13355&from=3523&v=2376528&ml=map&z=16&nwLat=54.424554885484525&nwLng=-1.085349994390663&seLat=54.41882454674354&seLng=-1.0591716344053115#/> [accessed 26 September 2023]