UKC

Further to Bob Moulton's posting here http://www.ukclimbing.com/forums/t.php?t=520577
We now have dates when the work will be carried out. The following was mailed out to the email list but if anyone else can come out and help us, please lete me know via my profile / PM or even a post on here!

Thanks,
Graham.
====================================================================
Sandstone Volunteers Group – update – October 2012.

A successful and well attended SVG meeting was held at Bowles on the 30th September. The BMC provided snacks and there were some good suggestions made, some of which involve the way the SVG communicates with ‘members’. The meeting minutes are appended below.

At present, we rely on word of mouth and an email list (that’s how you’ve got this mailing!). It was suggested that we move to keep up with the times and include social media in our range. Consequently an SVG account has been set up on both Twitter and Facebook. http://www.facebook.com/SandstoneVolunteersGroup

SVG activities at Harrison’s Rocks – November and December 2012.

The Forestry Commission have agreed the Woodland Management Plan for Harrison’s Rocks. The hard work put in by Malcolm McPherson and the HRMG has paid off and we intend to start work on the first compartment plus the non-indigenous species as soon as possible.

Work is planned for the weekends of 24th/25th November and 1st/2nd December.

The work will be similar in nature to other campaigns the SVG has carried out and will involve moving the arisings of the cutting work to the required locations - some for brashing, some for revetments, some for habitat hedges/piles and some for burning.

What to bring… Yourselves, primarily as we can’t carry out the work without you… However, If you have old ropes, pruning saws or bowsaws, pruners, bill hooks, spades, picks and shovels that you can bring along they will be very helpful. Gardening gloves are also very useful for hand protection. Old clothes and boots are recommended - a waterproof if it's wet and a packed lunch and drink. Please do not bring chain saws...
Some of the work will involve transporting soil back up to the crag to fill the revetments we will build - if you have a wheelbarrow and maybe plastic buckets and a spade/shovel, these will also be very useful.

We intend to work from 09:30 until dusk and will meet in the Harrisons car park for a briefing at 09:30. If you arrive later, please come and find the meet leader before you start work.

If we get a large enough turnout we may ask some to dig out the channel under the Squat Tower, and maybe the one below Grant’s Wall.

We would also like to get a smaller number of helpers on the 10th and 11th of November when we shall be building revetments using the wood from the beeches from around the Root Route area.

If you are able to help, please email me and let me know which day(s) you’re available to help. This helps us decide what work we can undertake on a particular day.


Further work…
We will also be doing some work at High Rocks, Bulls Hollow and Stone Farm – more details to follow.

In reply to Graham Ad: I agree about the chain saws, but we are always keen to hear from anyone who has a chain saw certificate who'd be keen to help out on other occasions. However, we do have two professional arborists, who now do the major work for us.

Hi all…

I’ve had quite a low response so far to my earlier posting asking for help at Harrison’s. The dates are coming up, particularly the 1st session over the weekend of 10th and 11th November when we shall be building revetments from the wood already cut and presently residing under the Root Route area.

Ideally, we’ll need 10 volunteers on each day so if you can help, please let me know as soon as possible.

The project certainly won’t happen without your help and Harrison’s is in a pretty poor state in places.

At present, I have the following help offered:

10 Nov 0 [ 10 needed to build revetments ]
11 Nov 0 [ 10 needed to build revetments ]

24 Nov 5 [ as many as possible needed to move cuttings ]
25 Nov 1 [ as many as possible needed to move cuttings ]

1 Dec 3 [ as many as possible needed to move cuttings ]
2 Dec 0 [ as many as possible needed to move cuttings ]

As a reminder, useful tools for SVG days include:

Bowsaw
Pruning Saw
Pruners/Croppers
Secateurs

Wheelbarrow
Hand Axe
Club/Sledgehammer
Spade/Shovel/Fork
Gardening gloves

Please come out and lend a hand!
Contact via my profile please...

Thanks for your support of the SVG.



Graham.

In reply to Graham Ad: I think we have a few volunteers for the weekend of 10th/11th now, but could do with some more. Please click 'like' on the SVG Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/SandstoneVolunteersGroup/posts/119605924861264?ref=...
where you can find further information, and/or contact Graham Adcock directly, adcock@clara.net. Thank you all for your much needed support !

We've had a good response but could still use more help, particularly:
Sun 11th Nov for revetment work.

Sun 25th Nov, Sat 1st Dec and Sun 2nd Dec for clearing the arisings from the tree cutting.

If you can help out, please contact me via my profile or the email addreess given above.
Many thanks,
Graham.

In reply to Graham Ad: Please also bring buckets (probably more use than wheelbarrows) especially on the first weekend. By buckets I mean the large plastic buckets that you get in garden centres etc. Size depends on what you've got and on what you feel you can carry up the slope to put behind the revetments. I'll be taking 3 or 4 - approx 40 litres each.

I've put a rudimentary web page together to allow updates to be given should there be any last minute changes to the plans.

If you're planning on coming down to help out, have a look here before you travel - just in case!

http://www.sandrock.org.uk/Climbingpages/SVGupdate.htm

Thanks,
Graham.

In reply to Graham Ad:

Thanks to all who came out last Saturday and Sunday - we got a lot of good revetment work done under cottonsocks traverse and Sliding corner on the Saturday and more, including digging out drainage ditches on Sunday.

The main clearance days are coming up on the 24th/25th November and the 1st/2nd December.

If you climb at Harrison's haven't committed to helping out on one of these days please consider doing so.

email via the address above. More info on the website above.

Thanks,
Graham.

In reply to Graham Ad:

Hi All...
The work at Harrison's Rocks is going well. In last weekend's rain the group cleared and brashed a large area of Sycamore and other cuttings - a great job well done.
Thanks to all who came out in what were, too say the least, trying conditions.

This week, the final Sycamores should be cut and also trees in 'the compartment' below Orangutang. Consequently, there's still quite a lot to be done.

If you've not yet come out to help (or even if you have and can help us further) please consider coming out on Saturday or Sunday. The weather is forecast to be dry but cold so a good fire might well be in order!

The work will include the continuation of brashing areas where paths have widened, moving some larger sections up to the crag for revetments and the revetment work itself.

Pruners, bowsaw or handbill are the most useful tools for the brashing work. Gardening gloves, old (warm!) clothes and boots... But if you have no tools, it's not a problem.

If you can come out, please let me know or simply turn up - you'll be very welcome. Help us bring all of Harrison's Rocks back to a climbable condition.

Meet 09:30 (both days) in the car park at Harrison's. If you're later, walk along the path below the crag and find us!

Many thanks,
Graham.

In reply to Graham Ad: In case anyone is wondering why we are laying brash on the slopes below the Rocks it is to stop people making new tracks up to the Rocks. We ask everyone to follow the existing diagonal paths, which are designed to stop sand getting washed down the slopes. This avoids the large areas of bare sand below the Rocks that used to exist before the ground erosion work started in the late 90s.

The results of the tree work are spectacular. All the Sycamores are gone from the lower path and the 1st compartment has been cut in accordance with the Forestry Commission agreed plan under Orangutang.

The brash from the arisings has been used to mark footpaths and reduce the number of paths between the lower path and the crag in an effort to reduce the erosion of the sandy bank. Please keep to the marked footpaths.

Timber from the arisings has been used to mark footpaths and the crag edge and also in revetments to maintain the condition of the footpaths and path along the base of the crag.

This could not have been done without volunteer help and I would like to say a big thank you to all who came out and helped with the project in what can only be described as 'trying' weather conditions.

Of course, it's not quite finished and there will be more work required to finish off but we'll wait a while to see how the works settle.

There will be some work at Stone Farm Rocks and also at Bulls Hollow to be done over the winter period.

Thanks,
Graham.

In reply to Graham Ad: Hi guys, I'm moving down to Guildford in Jan, and would be keen to help, my first climb was Harrisons 15 years ago, I still have the forehead - lump from not wearing my helmet. Please keep this post updated.