Another cold day down at the Meadow. The aim of the day was some brush clearing, litter picking and a bit of path edging. We pitched up base camp and set up an information point to engage some of the people passing by.
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| Base camp for the day |
Unfortunately two strokes in with the scythe and I managed to snap the handle. After a brief moment of sadness and grief at my loss, I continued to clear away with the edge of a spade... obviously nowhere near as efficient as the scythe! All the same, some progress made but not as much as I had hoped to achieve.
A minor bit of brush clearing following the scythe snapping incident... before - after.
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| Jam butties by the fire side at Meadow base camp. |
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| Oliver edging the path |
Some of the discussions I had on site today gave me time to reflect on the project and why I personally with the assistance of others are creating the Meadow. As well as many of the compliments I receive about the Meadow project I hear in equal amounts, the negatives about the site or area... 'The dog fouling is awful along here'... 'It's a lovely idea to install benches... but they'll just come along and set fire to them'. Also sadly today, there were a few signs of anti-social off road motor bikes. Deep tire marks have ripped up some of the ground. But I guess this (and other reasons) is why I as many others, venture out as a volunteer for Sustrans and the Trans Pennine Trail... One person drops a piece of litter... another person picks it up... the visible and environmental damage has been counteracted (I always aim to fill at least one bin bag with litter whilst I'm out). It would be deeply saddening if someone purposefully damaged, destroyed or defaced some of the work we are doing at the Meadow. In my mind, this would be an opportunity and reason to try even harder, plan bigger, and focus on what I believe is important. It's always going to be a balancing act, but I hope, after time, the balance will tip in our favour. I can honestly say that I do believe the work that has been done so far has improved the site with the removal of litter. I also think that the dog fouling has decreased (but there's certainly room for improvement with this!). Onward to the next day!
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| Proud of the path edge encroachment clearing! |
If you believe you could spare a little or a lot of time to help out... it would be great to hear from you. I'm not asking you to sign up with Sustrans or the Trans Pennine Trail as a volunteer (although that would be great!) I'm just hoping for a few extra hands to assist and help the project reach its full potential. Please email me
jc@photoreal.co.uk
