by charlie | Jan 10, 2018
After 10 years, the wooden steps have begun to rot and the gravel dressing has been largely washed away, making this part of the Path difficult and even unsafe in wet conditions. We decided to make this the major task over the winter. We started the project at the end of October 2017, and although progress has been good, we still have a considerable amount of work to do to complete it. The work involves: Diverting field run off water into new ditches Installing French drains to keep water off the path Removing all old risers and steps and installing new ones Laying membrane, topping with one inch whin chips This is a steep gully, and the materials have to be man-handled down to where they are required. Various methods and contraptions have been devised to achieve this. The whin chips arrive in one tonne bulk bags, and are hand-filled into manageable 15kg plastic sacks. Up to ten of these are then put back into a large bag and a “gravity drop” system using ropes and pulleys is used to lower to the site. Also a huge thanks to Alan and Maureen Currie of Fisherton Farm for helping deliver the chips to the top of the gulley by tractor. The job should be completed by early spring but in the meantime please be careful if you are walking. The route is still passable, but is extremely slippy when wet. ...
