23 gorgeous GoodGymers gathered at the Poppleton Community Centre for Springtime Shenanigans.

Big Pete set off first with the 15kish fast pace group (actually nearer 13k) followed by Little Babs leading the 7kish not so fast pace group (actually nearer 6k) and Old Nick with the 10kish sexy pace group (OK this was actually over 11k)

Heading across the fields towards Moor Monkton we enjoyed the post solstice lighter night even if the weather wasn't exactly springlike.

There was mud

There were riverside paths

There was slipping

There was a barky dog

And a small horse

There was rain

There was sliding

There was more mud

but then there was Beer and Pizza back at the Poppleton Social!

If you missed this edition no worries we are going to be having a social trail run on a regular basis through the Summer so keep your eyes peeled for next time

A small but talented group of Goodgymmers broke off from their second day of eating chocolate for an Easter Monday trip to Rowntree Park.

With three tasks to complete, we split into groups. The first task involved securing the logs in the sitting circle with stakes, screws and tools. Martin was definitely in his element with Radu, Barbara and Michael ably assisting. Speeding though the task, they were also able to join in the second task, barrowing woodchip to be placed around some of the saplings in the park.

With Neil shoveling (and eventually Martin and Michael as well), Leanne, Barbara and Radu were able to shuttle the woodchip to Jenna and Nick. They took charge of ensuring it was laid correctly. The woodchip is intended to reduce the weeds that would otherwise grow up around them and reduce their growth.

The final task was to dig out the nettles that were already starting to grow around the circle. Paul, Claire and Jamie attacked the area on the left whilst Lucy, Abigail and Hannah dealt with the nettles on the right. The ground was soft but the nettle roots were deep as usual so some of them put up a lot of fight before accepting they were coming out. Hannah managed to pull out some incredibly long roots so hopefully the nettles will remain gone for a good while.

With lots achieved in a short space of time, we put the tools away and played an exercise themed game of cards before heading back for some well earned brownies courtesy of Barbara.

After contacting many organisations it was looking like we may not have a task for our weekend away. With 2 days notice we decided to call the local school and Gavin at Langdale C of E School came up trumps!

We ran or walked the 3km from the hostel and was met by Gavin who had a list of jobs and a map! There was lots to do-

1- clear stones to level off a playing field 2- Use the stones to build a wall 3- clear leaves into the compost 4- move soil to fill a raised bed 5- clear the area near the fence 6- Dig in a pipe 7- Dig out the pond 8- Making a dead hedge 9- clearing an area in the woodland

in usual goodgym style we haphazardly got into groups and attacked the tasks with gusto! With a quick tea break we worked hard for a couple of hours and made a big dent in the jobs.

Gavin was very grateful and said if we come back there may be a pizza oven next time. What more incentive do we need!

We headed home via a couple of pubs ready to start the evening fun!

Despite original appearances that there wasn't much litter in our litterpick post Rothay parkrun once we'd added an element of competition by splitting into 4 teams we soon found some. Rich reasoned that heges were the best place to find hidden litter and he turned out to by right. Within 30 minutes we had 4 bags of litter so definitely a worthwhile endeavour.

We had a good turnout of volunteers to support our younger runners.

Many then headed off to support the Brass Monkey round the corner afterwards. Another busy day!

After a fantastic turnout from the GG crew at Dalby parkrun, and a fab breakfast in the courtyard cafe, we made our way to the visitor centre where we were given a task briefing by Imogen from Forestry England

There were 3 main elements to the task:

The first was for those with less of an eye for detail and involved cutting and sticking labels into books. Fantastic for likes of Mitch, Pete, Tristan, and Micheal (no offense guys). Hannah and Cara also joined in with this side but were definitely over qualified!

The second was for the more creatively minded, who would be coming up with 4 words to describe the books. Nick, David, Babs and Laura and Jackie were a natural fit and did a great job

The third was perfect for those who like to take their time over things and make sure everything is perfect. Catherine doing her first Good deed, Amy and Abigail were the ideal team for this job which involved wrapping the books in map paper so people wouldn't know the title of the books they were picking and could only go off the 4 words that Babs et al had chosen

Oh, and naturally the Area Activators, Ed and Vicky were on hand to make the teas!

A cracking morning full of fun, food, friends and a forest