It was a chilly September evening and 9 GoodGym volunteers ran along to the Community Nuttery in Smallcombe Vale to do some scything and harvesting. We had a lot of fun and really enjoyed spending a beautiful evening outside among nature (and a glass of homemade apple juice and cider!).

Welcome, Matthew!

We met at our usual spot outside the leisure centre in town and welcomed a new runner to GoodGym Bath. Matthew has previous GoodGym experience running with other groups and came along for his first group run in Bath. And what a great example of a West Country task it was! It was great to have you along last night and we hope you will come back again to run with us!

Please bring head torches, lights and reflective clothing

Sadly, the nights are drawing in and it was nearly dark on our run back this evening, so next week please bring safety clothing and equipment to stay visible when we are running.

GoodGym's 10th Birthday

Our route took us over the canal and up through Bathwick Fields. We paused to take in the beautiful sunset views over our lovely city and take a picture with the GG Flag. We are very soon going to be celebrating GoodGym's 10th birthday and every group has been asked to take a picture with a flag like ours. As part of the celebrations there is a campaign to have the most people taking part in Community Missions on one day (September 21st). We are working hard to get one organised in Bath, but they are taking part across the country so you will be able to get involved wherever you are! More to follow on this!

Two volunteers from Transition Bath were hosting us for the evening. Transition Bath is a volunteering network that is working hard to make Bath more sustainable. Part of their remit is managing the Nuttery in Smallcombe Vale (located between Widcombe hill and Bathwick hill). The produce grown there includes hazelnuts, sweet chestnuts and walnuts. We had two tasks to complete and we split into teams and swapped in the middle.

This is nut your average Tuesday evening!

One task was to pick the ripe hazelnuts from the trees. They were so ready for picking that they practically fell off! Some of the nuts were quite hidden among the leaves but we bagged up a load of them, ready to be dried and eaten at a later date.

"GooodGym went to mow, went to mow a nuttery ..."

The second task was to scythe the grass around the base of the trees. Scything is an ancient and very effective way of managing the height of the grass. Some runners hadn't scythed before, and were tutored on how to focus on using their core muscles and treat the scythe like a 'mackerel in water'. For those of us that have scythed before, it was a great chance to improve our skills and get a great workout at the same time! We piled the cut grass at the base of the trees so it will mulch down and help the trees grow.

We also learnt about how the classic song 'One man went to mow, went to mow a meadow' has its origins in scything. Sadly, we were not requested to perform a rendition as we toiled away...

Apple juice and cider: perfect!

Before we had to head back we were offered some homemade apple juice and cider from one of the allotments that is managed by Transition Bath. They both tasted delicious and we appreciated the sugar boost after all the exercise we had done.

Thanks!

Thanks to Esme and Chris for backmarking for us on the task and many thanks to Transition Bath for hosting us for the evening. Thanks to Matthew for the pun this week!

Upcoming runs

Next week we are running along to Action On Hearing Loss to do some gardening.

7 GoodGym runners jogged along to Victoria Park to litter pick in the play areas and shovel sand from the paths back into the sandpits. We filled up two bags of litter and helped make the park a cleaner and safer place for everyone to enjoy.

We avoided the hill, so the task was more chill!

Due to a last minute change of plans we wern't able help out at the church as we had originally planned to. But, if nothing else, we are adaptable at GoodGym and we are always keen to help our community in any way we can! This meant we avoided a hilly route ... but we made up for that with all the work we did!

We cleaned the park until it got dark!

The previous weekend was the last of the school holidays so there have been lots of visitors to the park recently. As well as lots of fun and games, that also, sadly, means lots of litter. We worked in teams to use our litter pickers to pick up as much as we could and we were pleased to fill up two big bags between us.

Picking up litter while getting fitter!

Some of the more interesting items we found (and bagged!) were a hair brush with a mirror on the back, a metal fork, half a screwdriver (where is the other half....?), a wheel from a skateboard and a pair of glasses (which we did not bag but left on top of a bin for their owners to find!). We did not enjoy picking up smelly banana skins but it made the task even more satisfying in the end!

After we had picked up lots of litter we used shovels, rakes and brooms to clear a path near one of the sandpits. Where the sandpits are so well used they tend to spill over onto the path which can make it slippery for people to use. You can see the picture of us celebrating our victory over the 'sandslide' in the pictures attached!

Overall

We were really pleased to make such a visible impact on the environment and on this great community space.

Thanks!

Thanks to Rob for the awesome pun this week. That makes a 'hat-trick' with three in a row now. Keep them up! Thanks to Max for backmarking for us and thanks to the team at the council for facilitating us for this task.

Next week:

We are running to Smallcombe Nuttery to do some harvesting! This isn't one to miss!

Last night, on a beautiful summer evening, 14 GoodGym volunteers ran out to Alice Park to paint benches in the new wildlife area. As well as getting some great exercise we painted 4 benches and gave a new breath of life to the park.

Welcome along, Griff!

We met at our usual spot outside the leisure centre and welcomed a new runner, Griff. Thanks for coming along and getting involved last night, Griff. Hopefully we will see you again soon with your very own bright red GoodGym t-shirt!

GoodGym events at the weekend

I shared the latest running news with the group. At the weekend there are lots of events as part of the GoodGym West summer celebrations. You are welcome to come to as much or as little as you want or have time for. There is no obligation to come to all the events.

• There is a park run in Keynsham on Saturday morning (which you can either volunteer at or take part in).
• There is a volunteering task at Bramble Hill farm in Bristol.
• Note: you join some of the keener runners and run from the park run to Bramble Hill Farm if you want!
• After the farm task there is the GG West Summer party in Bristol.
• On Sunday there are races with a variety of distances in the Bath 2 tunnels.

I plan on doing all of these events (apart from running from Keynsham to Bramble Hill Farm!) and I know there are quite a few others from GG Bath that are getting involved as well, so let me or the organisers (GG Bristol team) know if you have any questions about anything. It would be really good to see you there!

Avin' a giraffe in the park!

After taking the scenic route along the beautiful canal path we arrived at Alice Park with plenty of time to spare. In fact, we had enough time for some extra training before we were ready to begin the task! I got the group involved in some animal-themed movement exercises. We walked like a giraffe, then a bear, then a gorilla, then a crab and then a praying mantis. It was a fun way to do some good exercise while we waited for the task to begin!

We woodn't want to be anywhere else on a Tuesday evening!

One we were finished exploring the animal kingdom, Tony introduced our task to us. We had to paint some benches in the new wildlife section at the back of the park. The benches have been damaged by the weather over the years and were desperately in need of some care and attention. We took our brushes and a few gallons of Medium Oak coloured paint and got to work!

Team work makes the dream work!

This was a task that required us to use our communication and teamwork skills to make sure we painted all the visible areas of the benches thoroughly while avoiding painting each other and getting paint everywhere. We were super efficient and when some of the groups had finished painting they hunted down litter in the area to keep it clean and tidy.

Painting in such a beautiful spot on a lovely evening was very therapeutic and a good reminder of how beneficial getting involved with activities like GoodGym can be for our mental health as well as our physical health. We will return to Alice Park at some point to continue our mission of developing the grounds so everyone can enjoy the open public space.

Thanks!

Thanks to Rachel and Emily for backmarking for us and making sure no one got lost or left behind on the way. Thanks to Tony at Alice Park for arranging for us to come down and sorting out the paint and brushes.

Upcoming runs at the weekend:

• Park run in Keynsham on Saturday morning (which you can either volunteer at or take part in),
• Volunteering at Bramble Hill farm
• Note: you join some of the keener runners and run from the park run to Bramble Hill Farm if you want!
• After the farm task there is the GG West Summer party.
• On Sunday there are races with a variety of distances in the Bath 2 tunnels.

Next Tuesday

We are using our painting skills again at St John's Court.

12 GoodGym runners braved the summer heat to help out the National Trust on the Bath Skyline walk. We pulled up Ragwort and organised some bales of hay. Our hard work has helped maintain the beautiful space and helped keep it safe for cows that fancy a snack!

Welcome Iona and Jamie!

We met outside the leisure centre and welcomed two runners to the group. We were delighted to welcome Iona to her first GoodGym run and to welcome Jamie who usually runs with GG Croydon and is earning his 'GG on tour' badge with us! After a warm up we were on our way.

After running down the river Avon we turned off Widcombe Hill and onto Church Lane to get to the fields by the lower entrance to Prior Park. Despite the heat we were keen to get some extra training in and we paused to do some wall-sits by the Co-op in Widcombe. My quads are still burnin'!

Get a mooove on, we don't have all night!

The first part of our task was to scour the field by the Prior Park entrance to look for Common Ragwort. The fields are very species-rich limestone grassland which is really important for pollinators such as bees and butterflies, but some plants, like Ragwort, need to be controlled quite closely. Ragwort is poisonous to cattle if they eat it in large quantities and it also spreads very easily.

Cows are an important part of the management of the fields as they keep the level of the grass low and stop the grassland getting long, rank and full of nettles. So we combed the field, walking up the hill, like a forensics team and managed to pull up a hefty bunch of the weeds. We did a similar task a few weeks ago, so we were well practised in pulling up these tough old weeds!

"Hay jude ... take a bad pun, and make it better"!

Once we made it to the top of the hill by the 'Park Run steps' (as they seem to be known...), the second part of our task involved organising some bales of hay. The fields near where we laid a hedge with the National Trust earlier in the year have now been cut to hay, and the bales were left where they were formed.

We worked in teams to shift the bales and move them into an organised pile. They weren't as heavy as we thought, but were quite awkward to carry. Another great job done!

And it was all yelloowww...

The third and final leg on our journey was to remove any Ragwort from the field next to where we started. Luckily this meant walking downhill for a change (except for Mary who offered to go back up and leave the Ragwort at the top on her way home - thanks Mary!).

Among other things, we spotted a buzzard, lots of butterflies and some buzzing bees too. It was a real treat to be outside surrounded by nature enjoying the views over Bath on such a spectacular evening. Last night was a classic example of how getting involved with GoodGym can make a huge difference to our mental and physical health ... at the same time!

Thanks!

Thanks to Emily for backmarking for us on this one, and also thanks to Emily for the pun this week! And thanks to Tabi and her team of Rangers at the National Trust for organising for us to come along and help out. We had a great time and can't wait to work with you again!

Upcoming runs:

• Next week we are gardening at Donkey Lane
• On 17th August we have the GG West Summer Party