This week saw us back at Meadow’s Yard on the Tuesday. Lynn led the group in digging out the other ‘pond’, which resembles more of a low depression (aww). Due to there being no liner, 
all the water (ahem) was naturally draining away. So they dug down further, removing some grass turfs/turves (?) in the process. They also cut back further vegetation, litter picked and continued digging for clay.
On Wednesday we returned to Callendar Woods in Falkirk to do some more felling. But, this time felling different species – which caused a bit of confusion – not only from an identification side of things. Firstly it meant we were working in a different section of the wood. And the theory that we could take the vehicles to the site. This proved incorrect, due to a large Scot’s pine which had been tastefully felled right across the track. So Rob learnt how to reverse the van. Much to and fro-ing commenced as we gradually realised we had left things in the van, which was now parked a good 10 minute walk away – many apologies!
So this time instead of felling sitkas, we were selectively felling larches and silver birches. 
(I would like to instill some advice regarding selective tree felling: if you don’t know what it is, don’t cut it down). Progress was good and all too soon it was lunchtime. During the afternoon much wildlife presented itself, mainly squirrels and buzzards, the latter swooping right over our heads.
We finished up fairly early – after a visit to the mausoleum- as it was a particularly cold and clamy day.
Thursday we were back at Meadow’s Yard and the pond. During the morning, work started on the pond-dipping platform – made complicated as we realised how much wood we had brought with us Vs how much we needed (and which bits). A highly unusual request for post-holers arose, but unfortunatly this time we had specialised in bringing a selection of pencils, not post-holers or in fact trowels (competition is now on to see if we can actually get through a (construction) task with all the correct/required tools).
Another slight miscalculation was the height to which the liner came up the side of the pond, as this interfered somewhat with the positioning of the posts, but it was all sorted out in the end.
During lunchtime, Anna stuck her head down a rabbit hole (despite being warned of potential dangers) and found a considerable amount of rubbish (metal poles and the like) and, bizarrely some carrot peelings.
In the afternoon, a litter ‘pick’ commenced. I say ‘pick’ but it was really an archaeology expedition. Even with the assumption that the site was an old railway siding, there was a insane amount of items given that the nearest recycling centre is across the road. Key items found include: a whole (intact – until Pat was let loose with a saw) shed roof; an old Anderson shelter (in bits); oil drums; assortments of buckets/pans with holes; a considerable number of old forks, shovels and wheelbarrows (in various neglected states, some with, some without the wheel and/or the barrow) which led to the impression that a previous conservation group had got lost many years ago. Unfortunatly we could not remove the cast-iron bath (origins unknown, unlikely to have been cast (ahem…) over the fence). So we collected it all, and piled it at the bottom of the steps for the council to pick up.
And so we left.
To see photos of past and present projects click here