Dear Woodlanders,
The weather’s been pish, but let that not stop you from appreciating the woods! Here’s what’s been happening.
Following on from my mention of the ill-placed bike trail in my last blog, it was revealed to me that the trail and the jumps were constructed by a group of kids who, having spent lots of time and energy on something they felt proud of, were pretty upset to find that I had destroyed their hard work (I dismantled it just after the blog post due to the proximity to a pine marten box). I would like to apologise for causing upset, perhaps if I had waited until I could speak to the lads this wouldn’t have been such a shock. I appreciate the woods are a refuge for a lot of young folk in these troubling times, so to have this endeavour destroyed (and publicly slated) must have been a blow.
I hope the kids can find the heart to try again. Perhaps a location can be found that can be agreed on, where conflict of interest can be minimised, and we can all share the space we have. Not always an easy task but by talking and working together we can have space for everyone in the woods.
Destruction seems to be the theme recently, as the marker posts Chris and I put up on Street Fighter have been vandalised. Who did this I do not know, nor the intention behind it. If someone has a problem with the marker posts on this well-used bike trail, I would extend the invitation to talk to me about it rather than taking action to vandalise and leaving as sharp broken plastic which could be dangerous. These will be replaced shortly – sadly time and money which could be put to use elsewhere.
Tom McBain has also lent a hand this week assisting with a couple tree safety jobs as well as splitting some firewood for Lorna and Mark. Nice one, mate. With demand for firewood evident, I am chomping at the bit. However, we are limited in our capacity to provide it as we have no machine to extract the timber to a place it can be processed and eventually taken away.
In other news, I have been preparing the application for a Felling Permission for the strip of trees along the Gillies Hill residential boundary. It has been suggested many times to clear a strip here to allow more light into folks’ gardens. If you have strong feelings about this proposed operation, give me a shout so I can understand your concerns. The intent is to submit the application on 1st February unless there are any concerns which need to be factored in.
Winter is an awesome time to hone your tracking skills. With lots of wildlife roaming the hill, you can observe footprints in the mud and snow. Great fun, and really rewarding to identify the animal who left the tracks.
Thanks to the folk who expressed interest in joining the Natural History Club. I’m looking forward to going on walks to observe field signs like this at some point soon, I hope.
As ever, please don’t hesitate to get in touch about anything woodsy.
Cheers for now,
Amos