What word do you use for this autumn based activity

[MrsPeacockInTheLibrary]

You are in a park in autumn and there are piles of leaves on the ground.

What word, if any, would you use to describe moving through those leaves?

e.g. They were / They through the leaves.

Testing a theory!

Wading - surprised that only a couple of people have quoted this word.

I would say “crunching” where in any other circumstance I’d say “walking”. Replace with running/kicking/etc if relevant!

Kicking the leaves, or crunching through if frosty.

Kicking

Kicking

I’ve never really tried to articulate this action before, but now I stop and think about it, I don’t know what the word is, and none of the ones mentioned so far quite hits the spot (though “shusshling” is very good).

OP, are you going to tell us you’ve identified THE word??

You’re right OP - it needs a verb of its own. I’m with Jeff Wayne for now.

I've never had a specific word for it, but I think I'll adopt 'shushling' henceforth - thanks @Scarby9

Scrunching through the leaves.

Leafworrying

It would depend how they did it?!

Running through
Wading through
Walking through
Cartwheeling through

But most likely playing in/kicking as we don't really 'move through' them as though they're an obstacle.

I would use all the words on this thread except for shushelling which I’d never heard of. Mainly kicking though.

Swishing about in the leaves.

Rustling. OP come back and tell us what argument you are settling please!

Swishing/swished

I personally would say do not kick through the leaves as there is bound to be a pile of poo underneath!

1. arachnophobic 2) whimpered

Scoosh

Crunching

:LaLaLaLa: Autumn is not nearly here….

Mansplaining
Mansplained

LuckingFovely and Lovefall (good name for this) were the first two people who mentioned the word I was thinking of - scuffling!

There have been some great words mentioned - I know what Scarby9 means about words you say but don't always have a spelling for.

My theory, or confident belief until last night, was that scuffling was pretty much the universal word used for this activity! I remember scuffling through leaves from very young, and calling it that. I am in the South West, if us scufflers are regional.

Rustling and shuffling also make sense - but it is SCUFFLING here! :)

What kind of “moving through the leaves” do you mean?
Just walking through them because they are on the path? I’d say walking.
Or actively playing in the leaves? I guess jumping/playing/running depending on the specific activity. I’m not sure the presence of the leaves would change my word.

I thought I was going mad as I mentioned it in the pub as we were discussing autumn coming - and several people looked at me blankly.

Some googling commenced and I found links such as this one:
www.gardenatoz.com/what's-up!/kid's-views/scuffling-and-learning/

"Inside us we carry our earliest joys, such as leaf scuffling, one of Janet's favorites. One day, Elizabeth scuffled with Janet, then sat in a pile of leaves, lifting one after another and inquiring, "Dat?"

We answered, "That's an oak leaf. A cottonwood leaf. An oak. Another oak. A maple...""

But I honestly grew up believing this word was generally understood word for this activity! Never too late to learn.

@Knittingupastorm

What kind of “moving through the leaves” do you mean? Just walking through them because they are on the path? I’d say walking. Or actively playing in the leaves? I guess jumping/playing/running depending on the specific activity. I’m not sure the presence of the leaves would change my word.

I have found exactly what I mean thanks to the joys of YouTube.

It is people's word for exactly what this person is doing:

(A video of a person walking through a thick ground cover of autumn leaves and kicking them up, making a rustling noise)