Last night we met at Oaken Grove pond where 2 volunteers from "friends of Oaken Grove" were already hard at work chopping down overgrowth and making a start on sludge removal. Jacqui from RBWM then brought us the equipment we needed to get going - it was a relatively simple task, relocate sludge from pond area to some overgrowth nearby. Simple but stinky, very stinky! All GoodGymmers that attended got stuck in (the mud), some with wellies in the pond area shoveling the sludge into buckets and others moving the sludge via wheelbarrow to the overgrowth. And repeat. A great upper body workout for sure! We came away rather covered in muck but it was good fun and an amazing team effort that made a real dent in the work that needs doing to the pond this year. We were also treated to a beautiful full moon and red skies which made for some nice photos. Well done everyone!

Anna, Georgeta, Sara and Sheila all signed up to help at the annual Sunflower Walk in aid of Thames Hospice. The weather was looking changeable so we went prepared for anything..There were 3 routes for walkers of differing lengths, and Georgeta was assigned to a spot where the 10km and half marathon walkers crossed over the Thames on the way out as well as the way back. So she saw plenty of action. Sara and Sheila cycled to the end of the Long Walk, with stunning views of Windsor Castle (once the morning mist had cleared) and were able to tell the 100 or so intrepid walkers tackling the half marathon that they were now half way. It was lovely to see everyone dressed up with all their sunflower-related costumes, including an enterprising group with flower pot skirts. Everyone was safely sent on their way, and it only rained twice, and once the tail-walker came round, we were able to leave our posts. Sara and Sheila cycled back via the scenic route to meet up with Georgeta who was basking in lovely sunshine, enjoying her scenic spot, and directing the walkers back for their final couple of km. Back at base we found Anna, who had initially been serving refreshments but then promoted to welcoming the walkers home and handing out finishers' medals. It was great to help out with this event again, for such a worthwhile cause

Anna, Rosie, Rachel and Sheila helped out at Braywick Plant Nurseries. Dead-heading was the order of the day, taking any old material off the perennials to make them look nice and encourage more growth and flowers to come through. Four bucketfuls later we had worked our way round the front sales area, and all the plants looked lovely. And we had all selected which plants we would like in our gardens!

Anna and Sheila helped out at Braywick Plant Nursery today. Our task was to snap off all the dead flower stalks from the pelargoniums to encourage new flowers and make them look great. By the end of the session they were all looking lovely, and we had loaded as many as possible into trays (coloured-grouped to satisfy our need for order), ready to moved once Kate and Ben have decided where to put them.

An ode to GoodGym by Nicola and Amy who took inspiration from Coldplay at Glastonbury

Look at those (GoodGym) stars Look how they shine for you With lots of jobs to do Like painting blocks yellow They came along And brought a dog for you Had lots of things to do Like painting blocks all yellow

Instead of being at Glasto, 8 GoodGym hero’s rocked up to Holyport FC where we set up camp and started on the long list of tasks

Amy was on the main pyramid stage painting her yellow brick road (steps) while others started on the blocks

Tony was in his element with a wide choice of gardening equipment, and proceeded to the Other stage where he strimmed his way round all areas in need of a good tidy up

The remaining GoodGymers took the legends slot and spent their time cutting back overgrown hedges and taking an abundance of grass cuttings from behind the goal area, depositing them in the earmarked area

Snacks a plenty were provided and once everything had been tidied up, we made our way back home to put our feet up. Until next time!