SOWERBY BRIDGE - riverside path

 A big group today - Angus, Lynda, Jak, two Richards, Linda and Jerry - went equipped to tackle a badly overgrown path running along side the river in Sowerby Bridge. This job was funded by Calderdale Highways. 

 

BEFORE WE STARTED

 AFTER THE SESSION

 

 The path (now wide enough for a double buggy!) is much lighter and open for people to use. 

On-site supervisor!

 

OLD TOWN AND MAYROYD

Waymarking, Cutting Back and Drainage - Delph Lane and Mayroyd.

Ginny and Paul were out today tackling a variety of jobs in the Wadsworth and Hebden Royd areas. It was a mixed day weather wise with early drizzle turning into a cloudy overcast day.

To begin with, we did some waymarking on Delph Lane above Pecket Well and then moved on to Dike Lane (Wadsworth 061) to install a small waymark post and deal with a drainage issue on the path. 

After lunch we moved onto Mayroyd (Hebden Royd 017) where a ROW ascends the hill at the rear of the house toward Higher May Royd Wood. Here, we cut back a fallen Fir tree blown down over the path in the recent stormy weather and continued to cut back overhanging branches and intrusive brambles higher up the path.

Dike Lane map

The Old Town area work was funded by Wadsworth Parish Council and the Mayroyd work was funded by Hebden Royd Parish Council. Thankyou to both.

Marker Post on Dike Lane

The drainage problem was located further down this path toward Middle Nook:

Ginny at work

It is a wonder where all the water comes from!! We must have had lots of rain! This sodden waterlogged area is a result of water ingress (from the reed and rush beds in the fields) seeping through the dry stone wall. 

Drainage channel dug out on one side 

We dug out a drainage channel on each side of the pathway. The two channels flow into a small rivulet that crosses the path underneath the small bridge (seen in the background of the above photo).

Second drainage channel on the 'other side.'

Mayroyd, Hebden Bridge - working in the woods.

Work done on FP in red on the map

We went to cut back this pathway and discovered a fallen Fir tree blockage:

Pathway blocked!

We cut away the smaller branches with the tools we had which was enough for walkers to get through safely. The main trunk will be tackled at a later date.

Branches cut away and access now possible.

Further up the pathway part of a Beech tree had come down near the path with one of its smaller branches over the track.

Smaller branch covering the path.

This was cut away successfully. 

Overgrown 

We then trimmed overgrown branches, brambles and nettles from this long stretch of pathway.

Looking better!

A good day's work with the successful completion of several small tasks. 

Nelmires (above Wicken Hill Farm) ladder stile repair

Nelmires (between Wicken Hill Farm and Churn Milk Joan)

After a morning session when Ken, Steve and Frank put the Mytholmroyd depot to rights, Steve and Frank took advantage of the clearing weather to carry out some basic repairs on a ladder stile near Nelmires (see map).

1. Worksite marked with blue 'pin'.

The stile is one of several wall (or fence) crossings along this section of the footpath (Hebden Royd 025) which goes from Wicken Hill Farm towards Churn Milk Joan. 

Overall the path is narrow, close to delphs and negotiates two-step stiles, a flight of wooden steps and successive ladder stiles. Mmm! Ideal exercise for the intrepid walker but perhaps not suitable for the suggestion (on Calderdale Council's definitive 'Leisure and Culture Map') that it might be suitable as a bridleway!!

The job today for Steve and Frank was to repair one of the ladder stiles. Here's the 'before' picture:

2. Before: Mmm! Short of a rung or two . .  . or three!

3. During: New rungs being fitted and anchored with Hex-head screws.

4. After: New rungs in place . . . but will the structure take a load? . . . 

5. . . . Testing! Testing! . . . 85 kg is not a problem!

Today's work, funded by Hebden Royd TC, is only a short-term measure. It allows the stile to be used but a further review will be needed to decide on the best 'style' of replacement.

TODMORDEN - Stones area

 A team of three (Catherine, Duncan and Kasher) returned to the Stones area today to sort out a fence/stile which we had hoped to have done in advance of the Todmorden Harriers National Fell Race held in mid October.

We had previously sorted out and replaced a number of stiles and gates along this route (Tod 102) and this was the final one (for now) on our "To Do" list.

The stile itself was merely a set of large stone steps surrounded by a fence of varying degrees of decrepitude. The field crossing looks to have previously been a kissing gate with the metal uprights still in position (but far from vertical).

This was another of the "just" jobs........ just remove the old timbers and replace them. However the ground conditions were far from ideal and it took an age to get the new wooden uprights into position and aligned. It's always so much harder replacing or renewing structures than it is building a new stile etc.

The new structure is now in place and should keep the sheep in the correct fields whilst still being easy for walkers and their accompanying dogs to navigate. 

Many thanks to the landowner for allowing us to access this stile by a shortcut through his fields, Thanks also to Todmorden Town Council for funding today's work party and construction.

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

The stile (Tod side)... before.

The stile (Sourhall side)... before.

Duncan getting the first of the uprights into position.

Duncan and Catherine sorting out the alignment
of the uprights. This was made more complicated by the
metal posts still in position and the wide wall footings.

The second upright now in position.
Now it's time for the rails...

Two uprights and half the rails in position. A third upright
was added. This was used to affix the lower rails.

Catherine removing the excess rails.

Catherine and Duncan adding in rails to block off
the space between the upright and the stone wall.

Nearly finished. View from Sourhall side.

Views of the Tod Moor wind turbines
from the worksite.

Return to High Hirst Walk, Dodd Naze

Ian S, Gareth & Neil D. returned to Dodd Naze above Hebden Bridge to strim and cutback overgrowth and clear fallen leaves etc on the fine path, created originally in 2004, that skirts the Estate.

The path takes local residents, dog walkers and others on a stroll past the High Hirst Allotments (above the Woodmeadow) and on through the delightful woodland, which is also an occasional home to the Forest School based at the Community Centre. The path finally emerges onto Wadsworth Lane via a flight of steps.

A quick recce at the start revealed how much cutting back and hedge trimming

there was to do since we'd last tackled the path back in July.

 

 While Gareth and Ian set to with strimming the edges of the path

and round the various benches and picnic tables along its length . . .  

 

 

. . .  we were also helped by two keen volunteers from the Estate,

who attacked a large pile of hedge cuttings with loppers and shears.

 

Someone had dumped all this at the entrance to the walk off Manor Drive. It was not only unsightly and partially blocked the entrance, but was proving to be a mecca for more litter ('etc')!

Unspotted at first by any of us, was a poorly pigeon perched below the greenery of the hedge. Can you see it in the photo above?  It seemed stunned somehow, perhaps a victim of the recent gales and Storm Boelo? As the pile got lower, the pigeon became more visible and eventually it shuffled away into the bushes. 

As it was clearly unwell, we called the wonderful folk at the 'Full of Joy' animal sanctuary up at Great Rock, near Blackshaw Head. They told us, if we could catch it and leave it in a cardboard box at the entrance, one of their volunteers would come and collect it and, if necessary, they would take it to a vet. (See below. . . ) 

Before and after (1)  . . .

     

The pile of cuttings (left) now neatly bagged up (right) ready for Calderdale Council to collect.

Note the sawn logs neatly stacked awaiting collection by a local resident (as requested!) on the High Hirst Walk boulder at the start of the walk, and the boxed pigeon by the ground also awaiting collection.

Before and after (2) . . .

(Left) The nettles had grown back with a vengeance since the ground had last been strimmed back in July (left), while (Right) Gareth and Ian survey their good work at having fully revealed, once again, the boulder stone inscribed with the name of the walk at the other end of the path near Wadsworth Lane.

 

Job (neatly) done! 

N.B. This work on High Hirst Path is undertaken twice a year through an agreement originally drawn up between CROWS and the Dodd Naze Community Association and the now-disbanded 'Friends of High Hirst Woodmeadow' project.  In return for helping to keep this path clear and accessible, CROWS agreed to provide safe storage for both groups' Husqvarna multi-tool.  They could then be properly serviced and maintained as required, and used on other paths throughout the area in the upper Calder Valley in which CROWS operate.

P.S. A sad ending... 

Unfortunately, we later received this message about the fate of our pigeon from the good folk up at 'Full of Joy':

'Your chap was incredibly ill, I'm afraid. He had a huge abscess on his right leg that had infected the bone and smaller one on his left foot. The larger one had eaten and destroyed a lot of his leg. The kindest thing was to say goodbye. I'm really sorry. But you saved him from a long, painful death.'