On a patch of paddock in West Gippsland stands a small forest, which wasn’t there before.

Flowering gums and she-oaks reach up nine metres tall, birds nest in their branches, while a giant tiger snake slides through the grass below.

All it took was one day of “bloody hard” work.

About four years ago the Australian film-maker and outdoorsman Beau Miles set out to plant 1,440 trees and shrubs in 24 hours – enough to turn a blanket of rolling Victorian hills back into bush.

Miles decided he was done with the kind of modern-day adventures that burned through money and carbon, delivering little in the way of tangible outcomes except for photos and a great story. Instead, he says, he began looking for physical challenges that offer more “bang-for-buck”.

Story includes a YouTube video.