At last a dry and sunny day!!! So which job to do? The fields were very waterlogged after several days of rain so one stile that has been on the list for a long time seemed the obvious choice as it is on the roadside. This is one of the most used stiles in the village and is used daily by dogs (Paul’s neighbours). It has a dangerously short step on one side; it is held more in place by the undergrowth than the timber and (perhaps, most importantly) is only 5 metres from Paul’s boundary.
Five volunteers turned out to assist but as access was limited for working, Jeff decided to return to his babysitting duties. Neil, Malcolm, Richard and Paul struggled a bit with the overgrown hedge with its deep roots; also there were several large rocks under the surface, perhaps and old wall or similar had existed there in the past.
As you can see from the pictures, the hedge was trimmed back, a new stile was installed complete with dog gate and the fingerpost repositioned to allow access. It is our intention to install dog gates on all replacement stiles in the future, thanks to a grant from Councillor Ian Parry. The excavated were repositioned as a firm step on the roadside.
By this time The Green Man was open so we dropped in for a couple of well earned pints!
