A great gathering of eight Goodgymmers showed up at the Phoenix for our group session. Our stalwart welcomers, Rachel and Beattie were there early, soon joined by long time Goodgymmer Richard and new regular Sheela, both getting into regular sessions this year.

We had an amazing three newcomers (is the Sky Ad working its magic?? At least one person saw it). Ben trekked all the way over from Colindale, arriving nice and early. James rocked up in good time, followed by Emma, who joined us mid-warm up.

Warmed up, and ice-broken - thanks to Beattie for the question about what we'd all been up to for the bank holiday weekend (general consensus: lots of walking!) - we jogged the short way over to Cherry Tree Wood. Inspired by Paul's absence, we had a quick exercise session with kick-squats and running in a circle. (I promised it was going to be lighter than one of Paul's attempts, but it turned out to be harder because everyone was so amazing!) Filip met us at the cafe - he's almost ready to earn his first t-shirt!

Then to the session. András, Roger and Joe set us to mulching the fruit trees. Ben took up shears, cutting the grass - Richard and I helped, using our hands. James and Emma grabbed shovels and jogged to the mulch pile near the gate, while Sheela and Beattie grabbed the wheelbarrows, to run them back and forth to the trees. Rachel and Filip helped Joe rip up the cardboard to lay over the cut grass, and a few took turns watering the cardboard and then the mulch.

As always, our amazing team effort covered twice as many trees as expected, so Rachel and Richard also had a go at sweeping the nearby paths, while James and Emma gave the mulch pile a bit of a tidy with the rakes. A great session very much valued by our hosts - András sent some before-and-after pics over as evidence of our hard work.

A big thank you to everyone who joined our monthly “anywhere, any time” litter pick. Whether it was a lunchtime plog, a riverside tidy-up, or a quick local wander with a picker and bag, every bit helped.

We had members out and about clearing rubbish from local paths, waterways and green spaces — including a great River Quaggy effort where three bags for life were filled. It’s a simple idea: spot some litter, pick it up, send a photo, and help keep our communities cleaner.

Sally and I celebrated Earth Day with a litterpick i • Then it was off to the theatre. The litterpicker wasn't allowed in, but the staff took good care of it. Maybe they used it for a quick bit of litter picking whilst we were in there 16:36

Why litter pick? A very short sea shanty:

There once were some runners who cared for the land, With litter pickers firmly in hand. They cleared up the street, Made the neighbourhood neat, And sailed into May with a plan!

Thanks again to everyone who took part. Let’s go again in May — same idea, anytime, anywhere, solo or with a friend.

We started this one from the artsdepot. Brilliantly, no one got lost and went to the Phoenix Cinema, or brought more than they could carry - at least, no one we knew about. 5 Goodgymmers gathered - regulars Beattie and Rachel arriving first. Was great to see Rupesh, who joined us for the first time in a while and will be getting stuck back into missions. Subham finished the set, running from Finchley Central to join us, arriving ready to go.

We warmed up a sunny patch outside the artsdepot, then we set off on a 2km run to the Porters Way entrance to Coppetts Wood. We were met by Julian, one of the Coppetts Wood Conservationists, along with Filip and Chloe for their second session this month - they'll be earning their free t-shirts in no time!

Julian introduced us to the history of Coppetts Wood and their volunteer group - who meet for 3hrs every Sunday at 9am at the entrance off Porters Way. More labour welcome, if you're free - details here.

Then we trekked through the wood to the North Circular for our clean up, and found our first challenge: a dumped motorbike. This had been removed by volunteers once before, but magically found its way back into the woods, so we removed it again and reported it. Then we scoured the bushes and undergrowth, picking most cans and bottles from inside the fence. We hauled out a discarded roadworks barrier and before long we'd hit our time limit, so we stored our stash by the sign and reported it.

Then, given our unusual end point, Rachel and Beattie found a bus to take them home, while Subham, Rupesh and I ran back through to the Colney Hatch Lane entrance, taking the scenic route. A glorious run through soaring woodland flowers and darting birds, after which, Rupesh headed home eastwards, while Subham and I completed the circuit back to North Finchley for a pint, with Filip and Chloe walking to meet us.