Not strictly tree related but countryside related

[Matthew Arnold]

Our litle project today. Install one pedestrian gate complete with stock proof fencing to the right hand side. Install latch onto post so field gate can close.

[Matthew Arnold]

Had a another productive day. Finished off a couple of footpaths in a nearby village then cleared a very overgrown bridleway. The next bridleway we went to clear we only did 3/4 of it as it was full of chain link fence that the flail was happilly eating.

[Matthew Arnold]

Todays little job was to resurface a path. Last month the RoW dept put down stone to make the path more usable the problem was the stone was massive and push chairs couldnt go along it. We put down pea gravel then Mendip type 3 (5mm to dust) then wacker plated it. In a few days with a bit of rain and sun it will go rock hard.

[Matthew Arnold]

Yet another RoW day only this time more clearance. Managed to clear two footpaths as one of them had been done in the last week. One of the footpaths you could walk down but would have to be crouched most of the way. The other footpath was completely unusable until we went at it with a hedgecutter.

[Matthew Arnold]

This mornings job was to mow around a community orchard. It is normally strimmed but the grass was "too long" for their strimmer. So we brought our rough deck mower and knocked it all flat within 2 hours. The full length skid kept clogging up so we cut a 3 inch piece of steel out of the skid so it could clear the grass.

[Matthew Arnold]

Spent the last three days shifting road planings on a footpath diversion which has been going on since the 2001 foot and mouth outbreak. The deal was the farmer dropped off two 50 ton heaps of road planings in the desired locations for us to use. My colleague in top of one of the heaps as a scale. This heap was only about 15 ton if not less.

[Matthew Arnold]

Had a report of a bridge off its mounts after the flooding. We found how bad it was this afternoon. A new bridge is in order according to the RoW ranger. I think 4, 4"x4" legs driven in will be sufficient.

[Matthew Arnold]

Todays jobs. Clear around bridge prior to rebuild and take pictures of state of bridge. Then install two full BS standard stile kits at different locations. Broke a hammer on the second job removing a 4 inch nail which bent badly when it hit a knot.

[Matthew Arnold]

Had a phonecall about a seriously overgrown footpath that was impassable. Most members of the public overegg the pudding so to speak so when we turned up with just a strimmer and realised we needed alot more my colleagues left me to strim a path down the middle as they shot back to town to get the hedgecutter and a pitchfork. It was cleared in an hour and a half from getting the phonecall.

[Matthew Arnold]

Had a bridge re-setting job to do this morning. I knew how big a job it would be to sort it out. Two legs were rotting at the base so we replaced those and tightened the ground anchor cables. The before pictures were taken on 24th July. Not a bad turn around from the previous floods as it was out of the ground for approximately 3 days prior to the call coming in. Got a much bigger job to potentially do on weds. The farmer has a tractor but we may use a van and a rope and strop to dragg it round then man handle it after that.