Thursday 22nd March
When the team arrived at the Craigencalt Ecology Centre and were enjoying the glorious sunshine we were welcomed by a friendly face. Gary was a key volunteer at the Cambo Green Gym and has since gone on to have “the best job in the world” at the ecology centre. It was great to see one of our past volunteers doing so well!
Today was a day of two halves. The morning was spent in a meadow area where the team made light work of tidying up a recently cut grassy area. Susan, Grant and Cate were armed with giant wooden grass rakes, just right for the job. Dave however was given a more robust (and substantially heavier) metal rake as last time his vigorous efforts lead to the death of a grass rake. After a few grumbles the lovely Cate took pity on him and swapped just before we had a splendid lunch in the sunshine. We were all treated to chocolate cake to celebrate Douglas’s birthday.
In the afternoon a different task was at hand. We were asked to clear quite a large area which was a tangled mess of brambles, scrub and long grass. In the beginning the team were daunted by this vast impenetrable area. However once we got started there was no stopping us. After a path was cleared up the middle to assess the dumping point the team got to work. Richard, Douglas and Keir, with their bow saws at the ready to take care of the low hanging branches and the old fallen trees. Mike, Rab and Steven tackled the brambles, which fought back, but a few scratches did not deter them. Dave employed the wheelbarrow to remove the huge piles of grass and scrub the rakers were creating. The team worked extremely well together and as a result the area was greatly improved and opened up for the visitors to enjoy.
The staff at the Ecology Centre were over the moon with the volunteers efforts. Thanks guys for a great days work.
