This afternoon we joined The Bee Conservation Trust, Discover Welling and Southeastern Trains to plant a host of bee-friendly plants at Welling Station.

With Ivar taking charge of the drill to create holes deep enough for the larger plants, the rest of us worked with trowels and a dibber to settle the seedlings into their new home.

We can't wait to see everything in bloom next spring and summer, when the flowers will be a brilliant source of forage for bumblebees 🐝🌼!

Coming up...

Wednesday 4 November – Putting up the Welling Sparkle stickers

Promoting Welling's Christmas market.
https://www.goodgym.org/happenings/putting-up-the-welling-sparkle-stickers-063d0797-a0a8-4e07-be10-06c420f143d9

Saturday 7 November – Clearing brambles, cleaning railings and coffee treats at The Exchange

Helping out at Erith's wonderful community venue.
https://www.goodgym.org/happenings/clearing-brambles-cleaning-railings-and-coffee-treats-at-the-exchange

Sunday 8 November – Lending a hand at Crossness Pumping Station

Helping to maintain this wonderful hidden gem of a museum.
https://www.goodgym.org/happenings/lending-a-hand-at-crossness-pumping-station

After parkrun this morning, we headed to help Bexley Bike Club with their free children's BMX session.

While Johnny swept the colourful autumn leaves from the skills area, I registered the children and ran through bike safety checks with them.

Once the coaches had the children riding around, I was on photo duty - getting snaps of the youngsters in action.

It's so rewarding seeing the riders taking on challenges and growing in confidence with every pedal.

We couldn't stay as long as usual, as we were due at another task, but we left knowing that we'd helped the bike club team deliver a safe and enjoyable session.

Sunday afternoon, and four GoodGymers headed to Welling to help Discover Welling get ready for Remembrance, putting up poppies along the High Street. We were joined by two local councillors.

With Storm Boelo doing its best to blow us away, it was a bit of a battle against the elements! Each lamp post got a poppy on either side, secured with cable ties, Hopefully they'll stay put in the gale!

We also added a sprinkling of poppies to the Welling cannon, making sure it was dressed for the occasion.

A few passers-by stopped to say thank you as we worked, which was a lovely reminder of how meaningful this task is.

With the poppies in place and a good step count under our belt, we decided to try iCakes, a new artisan café and bakery, for hot drinks to warm up. There we had a lovely surprise: free waffles and ice cream from their trial menu 🧇.

What a great way to spend a couple of hours on a Sunday!