Wadsworth: Parrock Lane; Tricky stile!

 Parrock Lane: heavy going for a complicated stile

On a day when threatened rain was replaced by blue skies. light clouds, gentle breezes and ideal temperatures Paul and Frank joined by Kris (for the morning) and by Jan (for most of the day) worked at a 'cross-roads' of paths (all described as Wadsworth 028). See map.

Today's work is being funded by the landowner. Many thanks.

1.Worksite location: A stile in a wall corner

The views from the worksite were magnificent:

2. Panorama: Pasture, settlements, redundant mill chimney,
woodlands and distant moors.

The original stile was built over a railed-off wall corner where stone steps gave access through a drystone wall. The stile and rails had seen hard times and looked like this:

3. The old stile: collapsed rails, rotten step-leg,
unstable treadboard and a decayed strainer
post doubling as a rail post.

The sequence of tasks was to:

i) install a post to act as a right-hand support for new cross-rails.

ii) decided on the best position of new step legs and install them.

iii) add treadboards so the higher board was level with one of the stone steps.

iv) fix cross-rails at appropriate heights.

v) install an extra vertical support for the cross-rails and a high-step side grab pole..

vi) landscape and tidy the approaches.

Mmm! Lots to do here . . . and extremely difficult ground conditions. Time to flex muscles and crank up physical efforts to a maximum!

The Detail.

4. Hole for new right-hand post.

This simple task gave immediate problems. Immovable rock limited the depth of the hole so the post had additionally to be secured to the wall with hex-head screw and rawlplug.

5. Quality control?: "What no oats?" 
One of several curious but friendly horses.

6. Decisions! Decisions! Will four
legs and two treadboards fit?

7. Heavy digging.
Problem: Massive stonework just below the surface.
Solution: Batter with bar, stone-chisel & lump hammer

Some time later:

8. Progress: step-legs being positioned.

9. Two legs in place and braced but  . . .
. . . more resistant rock!

10. Cross-rail time: Cutting to length to fit wall batter.

11. Lower cross-rail in place. Awkward
perspective but it is 'spot-on' horizontal.

12. End result: Two-step, three-rail stile with grab pole. (Note extensive decay in right-hand
strainer post which originally doubled as the stile side-post!)

13. Testing! Testing!

This was a long and tiring session but perseverance prevailed. The stile is safe, secure and easily negotiated. Minor tweaks can be made if necessary but it has the twin essentials of being horse resistant and pedestrian friendly . . . and there's always the view to admire . . .

14. Panorama: Wonderful view but . .  .
"Is that old mill chimney on the lean?"

More next week once we have recovered!

Path Clearance Back Lane (Eastwood)

 Wednesday 7th. Guy, Ian S, Dave, Duncan and RJ cleared Back Lane. 

Ryburn - Path clearing above Bar Lane.

 October the 5th and it still feels like Summer! Well almost - apart from the drizzle - as the sun did come out . . . but after we'd finished!

Carla, Chloe (new volunteer), Jerry and Angus firstly headed along the A58 to  Cairnwood Drive, at the end of which was the badly overgrown footpath that leads down to Bar Lane. 

This footpath has been visited by CROWS on several occasions but, yet again, despite some work by local householders, it was almost impassable.

Path off Cairnwood Drive is highlighted on the right of the map, the bridleway on the left. 

  

The path as we found it. You can just see Chloe disappearing into the overgrowth!

Carla and Jerry started from the top and Chloe and Angus worked from the bottom. Despite previous annual clearing, brambles, nettles, bindweed, ivy and various other shrubs had taken over. 

After a couple of hours the path reappeared and we were able to remove the majority of the cuttings to expose steps and a cleared thoroughfare.

Path clearance completed, steps cleaned and overhanging branches trimmed.

Chloe brought homemade flapjacks for elevenses - yum!!

Having completed this in good time, we headed to the bridleway which links the A58 with Bar Lane. Work (which is done annually) to cut back the overgrowth started on this bridleway a couple of weeks ago but while it looks to have had use by walkers, there wasn't much evidence of horse riders or mountain bikers taking this route which would help keep the growth under control.

The bridleway cleared and ready to welcome 2-footed, 4-hooved and 2-wheeled users.

Despite the rain at the end of the shift, we managed to get a lot done. The opening up these two routes from the busy A58 to other walks around the dams, along the Riverside path and up towards Scammonden reservoir gives plenty of options for the local community. 

A big thankyou to Ripponden Parish Council for funding this work.

TODMORDEN - Mankinholes Fingerposts

A day for fingerpost aficionados, as Duncan, Gareth & Neil B spent the day erecting or repairing a series of fingerposts around Mankinholes.

We started with a new fingerpost off Woodhouse Road providing directions up the hill towards Mankinholes.  Our second post was a replacement for a rotten fingerpost at the top of the same path on Mankinholes Tops on the way to Cross Lane.  Number 3 was a new “flag” (the correct term for the “finger” of the fingerpost bearing the words Public Footpath or destination of the footpath) for an existing post on the same path just off Cross Lane.  Number 4 was a replacement fingerpost on Upper Shaw Wood Road, replacing a post lost when the adjacent wall was demolished by a careless driver some months before!  This last post sits at the top of an attractive flight of stone steps leading down into Deep Clough which we cleared of vegetation a few weeks ago

Today’s work was funded by Todmorden Town Council.  Thanks as always to all those who support our work.

Neal with his arm down the post hole to the required depth

Post number one

Post number two

Post number three, pointing to the rainbow's end

Duncan & Neil sensibly not stepping back to admire their work

Post number four

The steps & path down into Deep Clough

TODMORDEN - Various

 There were three teams out from Todmorden today:

Team 1: Duncan, Gareth and Neil B were installing three new fingerposts in the area and fettled up a couple of flags (on marker posts below Mankinholes) which were rather hard to read. See separate Blog.

Team 2: Neil Mc and Richard A were working up near Hartley Royd (beyond Shore Green) to improve ease of access to two stile on Tod 049 - one near Ridgegate Farm and the second one further down the path towards Back Wood. They also re-erected some of the short yellow topped posts which mark the route of the Fielden Trail. These posts seem to have a habit of uprooting themselves and throwing themselves into nearby patches of soft rush! Mmm! . . . 

Team 3: Catherine and Kasher replaced the small boardwalk near Flailcroft on Tod 082 (which we checked a couple of weeks ago) and then went to survey a nearby stile on Tod 102 (which is the footpath which runs parallel to Stones Lane and Bacup Road). It is a stile we hope to replace in the next couple of weeks.

Many thanks to Todmorden Town Council for funding today's tasks and for the various landowners who have supported the work of CROWS.

The blue "pin" marks the location of one of today's stiles.

The blue "pin" marks the location of the replaced boardwalk.

Team 2:

The very high stile leg which certainly does not conform
to British Standards.

New legs being added. Please note that the footpath 
beyond the stile is rather narrow due to the conifers
on the RHS.

The new legs and treadboard now in place. Getting 
over the stile may be a little easier!

The two step stile with the two legs braced.

Team 3:

Removing the existing short boardwalk. The stringers
were not in bad condition but the majority of the 
cross-treads were rotten.

The basic framework of the boardwalk now in position and
being checked.

Catherine with the first of the cross-treads
being added.

The boardwalk nearing completion. We will return to 
add in the trim at the edge of the boardwalk. 

We had a visitor: a fast moving woolly caterpillar.

 A convenient place for lunch and cake!