Chipping Away

It's finally spring isn't it? What a glorious day of sunshine and actual warmth we had today as six GoodGymmers ventured over to Bathampton. And it was a classic mission too, helping the National Trust who have acquired a large stretch of land from the edges of Batheaston all the way to Morrisons in town.

Sarah, our National Trust Supervisor for the day, greeted us after a short walk from The George Inn. Onwards with vigour went Ruth, Art, Aaron, Emily, Meyrick and Kam, filled with the joys of approaching summer and (lets be honest), this was T-Shirt weather for the first time in an age.

Sarah split us up into two groups. We were all to work in a series of fields that, Sarah explained, were still owned by the National Trust but had a tenant farmer (they were the farmer's sheep not the National Trust's).

Group one set about moving piles of woodchip from where the had been produced from the removed remains of unwanted brambles and other foliage. Group two were tasked with removing the remains of an old fence that had been replaced, but was proving to be stubborn in its attempt to persist alongside it successor.

By the time we'd finished, all posts (metal and wood) as well as the associated tangle of barbed wire that had a life of its own, were history. One particularly obstinate metal rod whose removal we were beginning to thing impossible, was removed with seconds to spare.

Job done, again. We then retired to The George for a drink and a chat.