Dragons, Ghosts & Witches: Every Night Is Halloween in Burley

Evening shadows fall on Burley market cross

“I see little difference in magic and science, except to have the opinion that magic is one step ahead of science” — Sybil Leak

Story and photos by David A. Laws

For most of us, dragons, ghosts, and witches raise goosebumps but once a year. For the citizens of Burley, deep in the woods of England’s New Forest National Park, every night must feel like Halloween.

The hamlet of Burley is far from an undiscovered tourist gem. Quaint tearooms and souvenir stores straddling its winding, one-block main street bustle by day. But visit late on a fall afternoon, when shadows from towering beech and chestnut trees hasten early dusk, and you’ll sense the chill as spirits of the Dark Arts seek to reclaim their realm.

New Forest Ponies. Photo: Jim Chapman CC BY-SA 2.0

New Forest National Park, one of Britain’s largest tracts of unfenced land, is steeped in history, legend, and tradition. Located 90 miles southwest of London and 20 miles from the popular south coast resort town of Bournemouth, the New Forest was named for King William the Conqueror’s…