March 2011 Southern team update
Spring is in the air!
Over the last month we’ve completed the large project mentioned in last months report at Hallgarth in Little Langdale and have helped the South Lakes countryside rangers to try and tick off some of the jobs on what seems like the an ever increasing list of things of to do in and around the property.
These jobs usually consisted of wall gap repairs, bits of hedge laying here and there and other maintenance tasks that keep the property in good stead. One such job was in the Yewdale Valley, on the bridleway towards Tilberthwaite. Where streams cascade down the hillside and cross the path there has been stone lined fords installed to make sure the walking surface doesn’t get washed away. On one of these fords, the water has undermined the stone work, so Gav and Nick went about the task of trying to stabilise the stone.
This could be done by using many medium sized stones to reinforce what was there or if you can find one big stone, then you can fill the gap in no time at all. Although it’s more effort getting the big stone to the hole, once there, it’s a case of fingers crossed and hope it rolls in the right way.
(pictured: Fingers Crossed!)
The team could potentially be involved in five or six path projects this year but most of the time will be spent at Helm Crag in Grasmere, the continuation of Stake Pass with the Northern footpath team and another joint effort with the Western Valleys team at the notorious “Bad Step” on the ridge of Crinkle Crags.
The job at Helm involves cutting a new path line into the slope to try encourage people to follow a new, more sustainable path that should hold together better than the “straight down the hill” approach that people are using at the moment. This project will hopefully be completed with just hand tools, so we don’t need any stone or material flying in, which is a nice change. This cannot be said for the Crinkle Crags job and so at the beginning of March we were on the ridge filling bags with stone in blizzard like conditions with the Western Valleys team.
One positive aspect of filling bags is that at lunchtime there is shelter to be found on the fell if the weather is too bad in the shape of the empty helicopter bags themselves. The bags are made out the same material that you find at a builders yard for holding a ton of sand in, for example, but they are surprisingly good at keeping the wind and rain at bay. What walkers must think when they see bags that are moving round on the hillside is anyone’s guess.
(pictured: Spot the footpath ranger)
Whilst the helicopters are in town, as well as flying stone to the work sites, there is also an opportunity to fly other things up that we may need for the projects rather than having to carry up anything afterwards like sheds and tools and when you have a job on the top of Crinkle Crags, this can be of vital importance. I know that if we forget anything now, it’ll be my fault and the lads will probably make me carry whatever it might be that we forgot to fly up there.
(pictured: Forgotten something?)
Finally, if this update is littered with spelling mistakes and errors then it’s because Sam, who usually compiles these updates and did a splendid job of it, has moved onto pastures new and is now working in a different role within the National Trust for the South Lakes property. Good luck and all the best Sam from all of the team.
