Salted Caramel Ice, Ice, Baby

Playing a rain-dodge relay, four Greenwich runners chatted all the way to The Bridge and back, covering 3km in the process, weaving Willow into an arch and testing their biceps and triceps before enjoying a little social at the local brewery.

It had been a very rainy day but, looking on the positive side, those Willow sticks would be so much easier to push into the ground! A few of tonight's runners were stuck at work, so a very determined few made light work of our task this week. To start with, we used the nearby steps to warm up (the grass looked way too soggy), running hard up, jogging down, tackling side steps, lunging (though a couple of our runners are tall enough to cover the steps in one lunge!) and leaping. We were ready to go, mindful that the sky was looking slightly foreboding, a heavy grey gloom hanging over the Royal Naval College.

It's a short run to the East Greenwich Pleasaunce, but plenty of time to catch up on everyone's week. Well done to Amy for completing a sixteen mile run with her Mum, her longest yet! Show Amy some support here. We were soon at the Pleasaunce and were greeted once again by Ruth, Raeleen and Henrietta. We quickly lost Ben, who was so eager to get stuck in, that he rushed off to gather a bundle of Willow before we had even got our breath back! Show Ben some love here. At the other end of the Willow arch, Alex was already busy a-weaving, noticing the little green shoots that have emerged on the stems since our last visit two weeks ago - which is reassuring, we now know the arch will definitely come to life. Alex ran the Hackney Half Marathon in the heat a couple of weeks ago, he definitely deserves a hi-five!

By now, there was a good system going, with Ruth and Raeleen bringing Willow sticks around, Raeleen getting busy with her new tool (some of us did get to have a go and could see why she was keeping it close to her chest, what a super snipper!). We picked off little shoots to place between the larger ones, filling in the gaps, filling out the arch. Henrietta, our junior helper, kept herself busy placing, weaving and tying-in with pipe-cleaners. After the rain, we were constantly relocating snails, out to enjoy the moist evening air and having a good old nibble on the green lushness of the garden.

This is definitely one of those tasks where you are so immersed in what you're doing, that you only realise how far you have progressed when you step back at the end. Crouched figures emerged, not wanting to stop, straightened up and admired the now fuller Willow structure; it's certainly looking more tunnel-like! Quite suddenly, we had a signal from the sky that we had to move fast - the clouds were black and the rain poured down. Quick-sharp, Ben grabbed the biscuits, saving them from becoming a mush of crumbs and we all huddled in the doorway to contemplate our return leg (do we have to go?!) whilst enjoying a cup of squash and a choc-chip cookie (thank you!). But we did have to go and the rain paused briefly, so we took our opportunity to run.

As we ran, Amy suggested running to the river. Of course, it's very easy to forget that the river is just the other side of these buildings! As we got closer, we were treated to a beautiful post-rain sunset, which had to be admired for a moment, the lapping water revealing the 'beach' below (it's a great place for a walk, you can find clay pipes and all sorts of lovely treasure). The planned core work changed slightly, to embrace the railings and steps rather than the wet grass, so we pressed and dipped before a lovely stretch and a chat about an upcoming run on June 1st, celebrating Volunteers' Week. In the meantime though, we will be revisiting the Royal Greenwich Scouts, a slightly longer run with a great selection of tools.

This week we topped off our group run and task with a little get-together at the Meantime Brewery, just a short walk across the path. The warmth was very welcome and so was the ice cream that Alex kindly brought with him, yes, ice cream! We all mmmmmmmed and aaaahhhhhed at the delicious salted caramel delight and marvelled at how it's actually healthier than your average ice cream, really! The bar staff became our new best friends too, as there was plenty to go round! With so many good places to pop for a drink in Greenwich, this should definitely become a regular event, ice cream or no ice cream!