Nought Moor: 25-11-2025

 

High on a hill worked a group of vollies,
Lay - Eee - Odle - Lay - Eee - Odle - Lay - Eee -  Ooo

This week it was back to the hillside, high above Pateley Bridge, to continue with the job of removing the encroaching birch from Nought Moor, the SSSI moorland near Two Stoops. 

Regular readers will recall previous visits. Lots of lopping, sawing, dragging and dead hedging was involved - and so it was again - as you can see below:

This time the focus was half way up the hill 

and over towards the road. 

Here the birch was very thick.

However - Ken soon made inroads

on the job and worked his way back across

to the footpath.

Amy started dragging (not an 

easy job in thigh high heather).

Liz and Tim were cutting and dragging.

Once the brash started to accumulate,

Andy got busy dead hedging...

...as did Ros....

...and Brenda and Friedy.

It was full sunshine all day, which

was pleasant for breaks, but very cold 

to sit for too long!

Adrian, Ken, and Amy got so far away

towards the footpath....

...that they ended up having to create 

a second dead hedge over there.

By 2pm a stop was called as all the cut 

birch had been processed.

Of course there is still more to remove

but an impressive view was opened up.

Latest News from the Wallers : 26-11-2025

Are we lucky with the weather or what?  After last week's wimp out due to snow, all seven of us were back at Timble Grange to finish off for this year.   We arrived to find stones frozen to the ground but still added two or three courses and toppers to complete a 40 yard stretch of wall, 30 yards of which was a dismantle and rebuild; all in six weeks. 

The final cheek end section will have to wait until late spring next year when the ground has dried out. There were lovely winter views across to Menwith Hill and the new Blubberhouses bypass construction and beyond. 

Frosty morning (about 1 degree), view towards Menwith Hill.

 Chilly work begins - stones frozen to the ground

Barry and Rod had installed  

the final topper by lunchtime.

 They congratulated themselves

 on a job well done while 

Dave tidied up the site

Just after lunch and nearly time to go

A mud bath and some neat 

piles of very muddy stones

were all that was left behind.

Six weeks work

Back to Markenfield next week to complete the project that we started on 19 October 2011, fourteen years ago!

Tiplady Farm and Hackfall Woods: 18-11-2025

How best to deploy the troops?

Commander in Chief Liz had to think carefully about where best to use her workforce this week.

The Tiplady hedge was a priority, as it was awaiting completion with the final set of fence posts and rails and two brash piles needed burning. If it didn't get done this week that would be it until January.

Then there was Hackfall Woods, which was well overdue a visit. The usual walk through, carrying out whatever needed doing, was the order of the day there.

In the end - a team of four went to Tiplady and the rest to Hackfall. And here is how they all got on....

Team Tiplady's achievements:

At start of play the brash pile loomed.

Brenda got started getting the 

bonfire going before the rain began.

Amy and Helena took on the carpentry duties.

A welcome break or two by the fire kept spirits up...

...as did the cake that landowner Kim brought along.

By the end of the day, the fence 

was complete from down at that end...

...to up at that end, thanks to the two

joiners working their socks off.

They were amazing!

As for the main brash pile -

it was just a smoldering ashy pile.

Kim will get his grandsons 

on the small one that is left.

Team Hackfall's achievements:

It was a nap that branches would 

need shifting from paths.

These two were a challenge.

Tom dealt with this offending obstacle.

This bench got cleaned off...

...and Kent's seat was given a good brush too.

There you go - nice and clean to sit on.

A hole had appeared at Alum Springs...

...so that had to be seen to.

Other stone work had to be dealt with.

Ruth and Tom cleaned down steps...

...while Olivia decided to do her

 hamstring stretches instead.

James got busy with a spade

on this bridge.

Hang on - who's hiding?

Oh - just a trio of NCVs.

Well done to both teams on all your achievements!

Pateley Bridge and Timble: 12 and 13 -11-2025

Gravel shifting!!

Rain stopped play for the NCVs on Tuesday this week.

However, on Thursday, the elite corps of five ROW (Rights of Way) improvers set to work shifting near a ton of gravel down to the steps leading from the Top Wath Road to the River Nidd. The job was rather demanding but, amazingly, they were finished by 11am!

The state of the steps before

work began.

On your marks,

get set, go!!!

Alistair tamps his tamper

down at the bottom of the steps.

A much better footpath than

at the start of play!

Walling update!

Graham has sent this update on progress made on Wednesday at the Timble wall face:

Another weather surprise at the biohub site at Timble Grange with a calm and relatively warm day until early afternoon and, with farmer Derek having brought another couple of loads of good quality stone, it was perfect for walling, apart from the muddy conditions underfoot.  

Barry started by sorting piles of new stone before joining Rob, Graham and Rod who were continuing with the existing eight yard stretch, where good progress was made.

Dave and our new waller Simon dismantled the final six yard section to be tackled this year and started the rebuild. 

At lunchtime Barry surveyed what had been achieved during the morning and found it to be to his satisfaction.

Yep - that'll do!

Good progress was made in mucky conditions and it was an "excellent" introduction to the joys of walling for Simon.

Now - which piece might I need?

There are too many to choose from!

Weather permitting, next week will be the final visit to Timble for this year as conditions are too wet to continue any further. 

The collapsed cheek end is  totally waterlogged and can only be rebuilt once the ground dries out, probably mid April at the earliest. Looking forward to a dry Spring! 

What a cheek!