Let's go bashing (again!)
Last week the NCVs were bashing bracken and balsam around young trees.
And guess what? This week they were doing the same only this time the trees were in plastic tubes, not cages, and there were NO wild roses to scratch you to pieces. Mind you, they had a veeeery loooooong drive (or a shorter drive and a 40 minute walk) to get to where they needed to work, as they were up at the very top of the dale at Low Riggs farm.
As well as clearing around some of the trees, the main job was to ensure that the footpath edges were visible to allow Liz to check if any of the boards were rotting and needed replacing.
OK. That sets the scene. Now let's see them all at work....
The bracken was depressingly
thick, tall and robust.
previously been strimmed by two students....
...but the wooden boarding
was well hidden for
the most part.
So too were the sets of steps.
Friedy started slashing
with a grass slasher...
...and Nick tried out Liz's
plank and reins device in
order to deal with the bracken.
Slowly but surely the NCVs
started to win the battle.
Boards were revealed
and found to be sound,
apart from this end of the
topmost board.
Will and Andy used a spade to
ensure that the steps...
...ended up looking more usable...
...and Tim pushed his way into
the bracken to find tree tubes
that no longer contained saplings.
By lunchtime the job
was all but complete.
Lunch at the bottom of the path
provided shade but, unfortunately,
this positive was somewhat
outweighed by the
presence of an army of flies.
After lunch the gang went
homewards - those having
that long walk back down to
Stean treated themselves
to an ice cream at
How Stean Gorge.
Wallers' Update
by Graham 08-07-2026
We thought that two weeks ago was the hottest walling day ever, but today was just as hot. Close to 30 degrees by the time we left, but with a slight breeze that made things bearable. That said, this is a lovely site for walling when the weather is half decent.
Start of day
With eight of us walling, good progress was made despite the heat. Initially one team topped out the seven yards of wall left over from last week.
After topping out, Simon and Rob have a chat
An added hydration break was welcomed by all, after which the first team moved across to dismantle the next section. That was seriously hard work in the heat and Andy was noted for his sterling efforts with the mattock.
The next section prior to demolition
Work begins on taking down
the next section of wall.
The miracle achieved by the demolition team
At the same time the rest of us set about adding to the thirteen yards of foundations.
Six courses added on this 13 yard stretch
Prior to lunchtime, Liz came to join us with bottles of water, hats for those who were without, and a voucher for coffee and cake from the Washburn Heritage Centre as thanks for the work we did in their car park. Steady but sweaty progress continued until an early finish of 2 o'clock was called. Hopefully it will be cooler next week!
The team tidy up after a hot and tiring day
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