NATIONAL Trust Swan Barn Farm’s annual countryside crafts fun day attracted an enthusiastic crowd of more than 500 people, on Saturday

Not only could visitors enjoy expert demonstrations of a wide range of traditional skills, they could also get stuck in themselves.

Haslemere’s Black Down Estate rangers host the popular annual event, and this year’s fun day included displays by Surrey Amphibian and Reptile Group and the local bat group.

Highlights of the day were pole lathing, timber hewing and chainsaw carving, and the Black Down Estate management team also demonstrated their own woodworking skills, making roofing shingles, willow weaving, pencil making and creating fencing products out of wood from the estate.

Visitors were introduced to many countryside skills that have died out over the years, with the increasing use of machinery.

The annual event offers the opportunity to show how things were done in the past, and how these traditional crafts helped our countryside to flourish.

It also raises greater awareness of Swan Barn Farm, which is a model of sustainable living, with an orchard, chickens, bees, sheep, cattle and eco buildings.

Its small herd of pedigree Belted Galloway cattle is managed by the rangers and is essential for the conservation of the wildflower rich meadows and heathlands on Black Down and Marley Common.

Black Down head ranger David Elliott told The Herald: “We had a really good turnout.

“We had more than 500 visitors and there was a really nice ambience throughout the day, with lots of people having lots of fun.

“I was cooking on the barbecue, and doing the refreshments stall.

“We were serving up burgers made from our own Belted Galloway cattle grazed on the estate, David added.

“We had a nice mix of local crafts people displaying their skills and children could get involved, too, in activities like making your own bat box or wooden stool.”

The next event at th farm which is just a stone’s throw from the town centre is the annual apple pressing day on Saturday, September 29.