Fencing at Sparrow Hawk Farm - Part 4: 25-06-2013

Well - here we are again - as happy as can be. Ten NCVs reported for duty at Sparrow Hawk Farm on the hillside above Pateley Bridge. We were pleased to welcome a new NCV to the group - Osian.
Three others joined Paul (our leader) for grass identification training with Marian Wilby down in the council chambers. Photographic evidence of this can be seen below: 

Anyone know what this one is?

Marion consults the identification key 

whilst Hannah waits to be enlightened.

If you have been reading this blog recently then you should know the system as far as Sparrow Hawk Farm is concerned, as this was our fourth visit. We were continuing to erect the three fences that are needed to protect newly planted trees from being grazed by livestock.
So - for the benefit of new readers (or to reiterate for dedicated followers) the various tasks that had to be carried out included:

1. Erecting thick straining posts at each corner or bend along the run of fencing. This means digging very deep holes through very rocky ground. One of these holes had to be curtailed as running water could be heard underneath so thought that we'd better stop before we ended up with a water spout.

             

John and Jan dig down and down..... "I say Jan, I think we'd better stop, I can hear water!"

  

 Meanwhile, in the other corner of the area, 

Will and Osian use the giant tweezers and then 
add the finishing touches to a straining post.

  

Tony (the new) shows off his shapely calves 

- summer has definitely arrived.

2. Knocking in the fence posts 3m apart between the straining posts - easy when you say it quickly but finding out the best places to knock them in takes time. If you hit a rock with the post the end bends up and a post is very difficult to remove once it is in part way. Even more difficult is removing a post that is completely knocked in - something that had to be done twice when we realised we'd put them on the wrong side of the string line.

The string line is carefully laid out 

(ready to be ignored in two cases!)

Graham makes sure that this post is perfect
- no need to dig this one out, thank goodness!

3. Attaching the pig wire, ensuring that it is pulled taut with the special tensioning tool before being stapled to the posts. Only Anita had actually used this tool before so she was promoted to 'tensioning tool team foreman' (forewoman? foreperson?). She then cascaded her knowledge to three other NCVs, training them up into a crack team.

                 First you do this....  then you do that....  then you just pull this and.....

.... hey presto - a fence!

4. Attaching a strand of barbed wire around the top of the fence - no chance of getting around to this today I'm afraid.

Today we were working on the third and final fence (a trapezium shaped area). We worked hard from 10 am until 3:30 pm, managing to get jobs 1 and 2 completed and starting job 3 along one side of the trapezium. One more visit should finish the job off.

The day was glorious, as was the view. Digging and post knocking doesn't seem too bad at all on a day like today. Even better - our hosts, Kit and Megan, supplied a wonderful feast of goodies at lunchtime. 

A lunchtime spread fit for a king
(or a group of hungry NCVs)

(or a group of hungry NCVs)

The two cakes and punnets of strawberries were much appreciated and a competition ensued between Jan and Graham to see who could create the highest swirl of cream on top of a strawberry. I think Graham won but I can't be sure; Dean and Anita enjoyed the outcomes anyway.

Jan creates the first cream tower.

Anita and Dean eat the record breaking attempts.

Ros (E)