Summer Is Still Clinging On…

Posted on October 14, 2026 by Paul - Cawston Greenway

Mad as it is, we are still enjoying high teens in the temperatures. 18C at the weekend, 17C today, 20C tomorrow (mid to high 60sF), but then it falls away to the long-term average of about 14 to 15C.

I hope all the wildflowers that are having a late flush get to flower, but I somehow think they will struggle now.

Nine balmy blokes turned out on a warm morning. Matt, Ram, Mike, Andrew, Marcus, Reece, Steve, Dave, and Paul for another woodland adventure.

The Path To Leamington:

Because we are diverting our efforts to getting the Mile Marker Posts in, we’re a bit out of sync with where we are supposed to be, and the rain and sunshine have made everything grow like mad.

I did about 310 metres at the weekend. The grass is getting a bit thick and coarse, so I didn’t want to leave it until we are next down here.

I also strimmed around the most southerly benches.

It just keeps the path welcoming and our loop as open as possible.

Hopefully, we will have news about pushing on to Leamington by next week.

The Little King Has Lost His Crown:

Whilst down on this southern bit, I discovered a miniature crown.

How odd… It got me thinking – maybe there is some truth in pixies, elves and fairies.

If you have young children, you will get it. If not, don’t worry. I haven’t gone totally mad… yet!

Today At The Start:

The lads wanted to finish what they started last week. We had no marker posts to put in. We have postponed the last two until next week.

Ram, Mike and Andrew did a smashing job and made it very welcoming.

We have a few plans to make this bit even better. Hopefully, news next week to confirm.

Let There Be Light:

We are trying to thin the trees to let dappled sunlight in.

As much as we seem to do, looking back, it seems to be exactly the same!!

We broke for coffee and a selection of pastries, thanks to Matt. Got to be better than Oreos!

Always a good bit of banter and stuff, before we cracked on.

I scrambled up the bank and cut a few trees. Suddenly we had massive pools of sunlight hitting the ground.

Voilà!! We seem to have hit the jackpot!!

We don’t want to cut every tree down, just enough so that we have shafts of sunlight coming in.

We have a new person tagging, or whatever it is called.

We don’t mind. The path is for everyone!

Lastly, we litter-picked as we worked.

It just keeps it a nice place to be.

Mental Wellbeing:

Letting friendships slide…

The “let’s do coffee” but never actually getting a diary and making a date.

Friendships become acquaintances, and then meeting up feels awkward, and you feel like you have no common ground; the acquaintance bit just slides away to nothing.

Been there hundreds of times!! A horrible place to be.

Sending a text or WhatsApp just to say hi, and maybe a little bit of tittle-tattle gossip; it doesn’t have to be heavy conversations all the time.

I used to hold back from sending a text. What if that person is busy, or doesn’t want to hear from me?

I think this is called self-sabotage.

Ask yourself: When have you ever been annoyed that someone took time out of their day to send you a text saying hi? And if there is a bit of juicy tittle-tattle, even better…

So send the text or WhatsApp and let people know that they are in your thoughts. It’s just another layer of friendship being put down.

I know that some people are totally happy being in their own company and stuff, which is such a lovely place to be, but I would wager that most need friendship and human contact to survive.

Anyway, I will jump off the soapbox for now. If you ever wonder why this is such a burning issue for me, you will have to catch up with me in a place that is not a public forum.

Next week:

We are putting up our bird nesting boxes, and hopefully an owl box.

We need to get them up so that the birds can get used to them before the nesting season starts.

We are also putting in our last two Mile Marker Posts, so no more humping bags of blooming concrete about after then…

That’s about it for this week; loads on the pipeline as usual.

Until next time!

Paul

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A Bit of a Soggy One

Posted on October 7, 2026 by Paul - Cawston Greenway

I think we can say that Summer has finally loosened its grip on the baton and passed it on to Autumn. We had the last shorts-and-T-shirt day yesterday, and from today the temperatures plummet from the heady heights of July and August.

To add insult to injury, we also had to contend with a band of rain that slowly moved across the country.

But it didn’t deter ten crazy blokes from picking up tools and heading out. Matt, Ram, Mike, Andrew, Marcus, Ian, Mark, Dave, Martin, and Paul met under the shelter of an old bridge, which is about 170 years old, to be precise.

We had two tasks: put in two more Mile Marker Posts, and tidy up the encroaching vegetation and overhang.

Mile Marker Posts:

Martin, Dave, and Matt set about digging the holes for the two posts and getting them in place.

It’s tough going, and we don’t really know what tools are going to work until the digging starts.

One thing is clear – we all should have bought shares in Blue Circle because we seem to be buying bags and bags of the blooming stuff!!

Thankfully, only two more posts to go.

Wonky Trees and Overhang:

Look away now if you’re a Tree Hugger!

All of the trees that are spindly and growing at odd angles are no good. They are just cutting out the sunlight from hitting the ground and competing with the trees that are more established.

Thankfully, nature has a way of clearing up its rubbish.

After the chop, I stacked all the brash up into a super little habitat pile that will become a warm home for a huge number of creatures.

And over time, it will all just rot back down into the soil that gave it life in the first place.

Vegetation Cut:

We also pushed back the path edges. This is the start of the path (northern end), and we don’t really spend as much time down here as we should.

Because of the tree canopy overhang, everything grows quite slowly.

We broke for coffee under our 170-year-old bridge, and dare I say… more Oreo delights, but with a twist.

The Oreos came from America. Matt brought them back from one of his trips.

Fuelled with sugar and E-numbers, we cracked on.

I made a new friend.

Maybe not, when he saw that I had no food.

We had a lovely visit from Stephanie from Rugby Borough Council, who gave us a load of Garlic Mustard seeds. These are the food plant for Orange-tip and Green-veined White butterfly caterpillars, so we shall look forward to seeing more of these in the summer.

We rounded the morning off with the Mile Posts in, and the path much clearer.

Stumps:

As we make our way through the woodland, some stumps are cut at a height that, for me, is not aesthetically kinda where they need to be.

Fine if they are deep in the margins, but personally, I don’t like to see them like this.

I know that some of the guys don’t agree with me, but it is what it is…

I’ve now created a major trip hazard, so watch where you’re going!!

Wildflower Strip:

I got a strimmer out earlier in the week and just tried to work out how the grassy wildflower strip is working down past Potford Dam.

This just didn’t happen in the summer because nothing was growing. I hope it shows the habitat that we are trying to create between the scrub and the path.

Dunchurch Bridleway:

Me, Ian and Dave turned out and got a load of strimming done.

The building in the distance is called Windmill Farm, and there was once a windmill in the field.

One can only imagine the tasty bread made with local flour.

The path around the field is now clear and open. Thank us with a buy-me-a-coffee if you feel so inclined.

Mental Wellbeing:

Let’s get into the nitty-gritty of this – there is a male loneliness epidemic. There, I’ve said it.

The biggest killer of men is suicide within age ranges up to 70 or so.

So what can men do to make friends?

Drop the braggy “I’m The King Of The Jungle” boasting. It’s toxic, and trying to out-compete each other is so blooming tiring and just goes nowhere.

Stop trying to tell the funniest joke or story – again – it’s just destructive competitiveness.

Start doing the things that you love to do, and you will find your people. People who also love to do those same things.

Think about the energy that you are putting out – are you closed and huddled and coming across as prickly? Or are you open and welcoming?

I can see both sides of the coin. I love to be on my own, but hate the dark thoughts that I tend to turn over in my head when I am alone. I also struggle in social situations because so much is going on, and I feel myself almost performing to fit in. But having friends around me is so much better than feeling lonely.

Just go out there and find your tribe by doing what you love to do – they are waiting for you.

Thanks for reading if you got this far.

Until next time!

Paul

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Is This An Indian Summer?

Posted on September 30, 2026 by Paul - Cawston Greenway

Or the start of global warming…?

Temperatures have been firmly at the 22C (72F) point for the last few days, and I am sure it’s not supposed to get this warm at this time of the year, but I’ll take it, as long as the ice caps don’t melt.

Thirteen of us turned out this morning. At one point it was just me and Reece, but then an army started marching down the road.

It was a sight to behold.

Marcus, Reece, Mark, Ian, Matt, Mike, Andrew, Martin, Dave, Steve, Ram, Alex, and Paul.

We had three main tasks: put the Mile Marker Post in, strim the edges of the path back, and get rid of a bit of the overhanging trees.

Mile Marker Post:

It felt like we were digging for Britain. I have never seen a hole so deep.

At one point I thought that we were going to pop out in blooming Australia.

Strimming:

We made a start on getting the path edge back under control.

The warm weather and sunshine have fooled the vegetation into thinking it is time to grow!

All we can do is roll with it and adjust as much as we need to.

A welcome coffee and no Oreo biscuits – chocolate digestives instead, which are hopefully slightly better for us.

This is the point where we have a bit of banter and another layer of bonding kinda happens.

Overhang Chop:

Me and Alex had a good go at a chunky bit of coverage.

Loads of light flooding in as we chopped back and lifted tree crowns. It makes it feel like a much safer place for everyone because people can see ahead and to the sides.

Mile Marker Post 2:

We got the thing in!!

Hats off to the guys. There is always backup to call on, but they did it without pulling the rest of us away to help.

Strimming 2:

We got to the underpass, so the whole section is done, including the benches.

This just gets us back to a nice wide path and pleasant places to sit and chat. We have areas for everyone. Youth groups to give them somewhere to go where they are not bugging, or being bugged, by adults, mothers with pushchairs, families, bird watchers, butterfly lovers, or anything else that you can think of.

Rude Stuff:

Someone who thought they were the next Banksy, spray-painted some err, phallic, err, images on our murals…

Whilst I’m all for freedom of expression, these had to go. We’re a family-friendly place, and I don’t really want parents to be trying to explain what that funny-shaped thing is to their young children.

I now need to find someone with a bit of talent to paint over the big green blobs of mine!!

We litter-picked the whole path, as usual.

I know that I will not relax and enjoy the trail if there is a load of litter strewn about, and I assume that is the same for everyone else.

Strava:

Strava is a popular digital platform and mobile app that uses GPS to track, analyse, and share physical exercises like running, cycling, hiking, and swimming. AI Overview.

I have created a segment from one milepost to the other. This will encourage trail-runners to use the greenway and just opens us up to another group of people.

As you can see, I’m King of the Hill (because I’m the only one who has done the segment), but it will be interesting to see it getting populated as more and more people find it.

Mental Wellbeing:

Here we are again with me banging on about this thorny subject.

If men aged 40+ are generally finding it difficult to make friends with other men, then there must be a huge number of men who pass each other in the street, in shops, at work, or wherever, and have a little voice inside that is screaming out for contact, but something is blocking this from ever happening.

Urgh!! I’ve been there, so I know what it’s like. However, if you do something, you can change everything about this situation.

This is us on our late “summer” meal at the local pub today. I don’t normally put up photos because it’s kinda our time, but it just shows a bit of brotherhood and stuff. We do the same at Christmas and also do other stuff, and a lot of the guys do things outside of the group in pairs and more, which would never have happened without the Greenway as a platform.

It’s all there if you want to make changes that help with mental wellbeing.

There is not one of these guys who I would not drop everything for, and I can say the same for each and every one of us. A listening ear, help, advice, and sometimes a strong word if I’ve got something wrong…

Anyway, a rare glimpse into our time off the greenway, and a big thank you to Steve for organising the social stuff.

Until next time!

Paul

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First Day Of Autumn, However…

Posted on September 23, 2026 by Paul - Cawston Greenway

…we have a problem!

Everything is growing like it is spring.

The edges of the path have gone mad, and we are now having to strim the grass back to define the trail.

Anyway, happy Autumn Equinox and let’s buckle up for a really weird next few months!

Eight of us turned out on what was a really warm morning. Dave, Steve, Ian, Mark, Ram, Mike, Andrew, and Paul. We wanted to thin the trees but had to fall back to strimming and getting rid of the overhang.

Ram is down there on the 5th photo but I just couldn’t muster the strength to walk down there. Sorry, Ram. I do have photos.

We broke for coffee and even more Oreo biscuits. Are they ever going to not be on offer?

Much banter as usual.

We cracked on with strimming.

Whilst me and Andrew kept the benches clear of long grass and bugs that go up your trousers.

The views from some of the benches are lovely, so we like to keep all the seating as welcoming as possible.

Loads of people were using the path as we worked away, and nice that people stopped to chat and stuff.

These are a few photos that show how Ram got the width well-balanced and looking good.

What’s not to love.

Mental Wellbeing:

Last week I had a little joke with a friend called Ruth about why, as a group, we are just men!! I said that it’s because our wives want us out from under their feet.

Whilst it was very tongue-in-cheek, there is a bit of truth in this. We men, if not doing stuff like what we do here, can put a huge load on our wives. We subconsciously expect them to be our best friend, someone we can rant at, our therapist, our social coordinator, our tidy-up after us, our cook, running the house, coordinating everything, etc, etc, etc…

It’s called “Mental Load”, and if us fellas ain’t doing stuff away from our wives and putting some of that burden onto friends, then don’t be surprised when said wife starts to give us a hard time.

Moving on…

This week we sent Matt on an all-expenses-paid trip, in the name of research, of course, to try and understand how we can improve our views across Warwickshire.

This is his first report back.

I think we have some work to do…

I will let a certain person explain where this is. You know who you are…

Dunchurch Bridleway:

Me and Ian turned out last Friday morning, and we are now at that point where we really start to push out the width.

This is kinda what we do… Our trademark, if you like.

Wide trails with loads of sunlight flooding in.

We broke for coffee and, you guessed it, more blooming Oreo biscuits.

We want our paths to feel open and relaxing. If people are having to push through narrow tracks, then it is never going to be any good for families or friends (bloke friends) to go for a walk or cycle and “chat” about what is on our minds…

Ian spotted some fungi.

The fungi season starts here; at least something is playing by the rules of nature and not going for a burton…

I litter-picked most of the bridleway, which was pretty clear, to be fair.

And that really is that. Another exciting adventure on our trails.

Until next time!

Paul

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Cutting Back Season – Week Three

Posted on September 16, 2026 by Paul - Cawston Greenway

Here we are in the last week of summer. This time next week, we will be in autumn. How mad is that?

Nine of us turned out. Marcus, Steve, Ian, Martin, Ram, Dave, Andrew, Matt, and Paul, and we had two tasks to be cracking on with.

The first was pushing the sides of the path out.

Ram seems to have adopted a policy of “Go Large or Go Home”…

We just kinda went with the flow. We even strimmed around the picnic bench and added to the ever-growing habitat piles.

What can I say? We love the feeling of space and freedom.

One thing that we did learn is don’t try to cut tree branches down whilst clearing scrub. One or the other. Trying to mix it up just doesn’t work because we found that we had the wrong tools for chopping up the branches once they had come down. We need them to be in smaller bits to create habitat piles.

We broke for coffee and Oreo biscuits; yes, they are still half-price at the local shop.

A welcome break to just touch base with the guys putting in the second Mile Marker Post.

Because this is a mile post, rather than a quarter, half, or three-quarter, it needs to be bigger. There was a lot of digging.

But the lads got it in, and luckily, there is only one more big one to do.

Looking at the “after” photos, it all looks pretty good.

To make sure that we are on the right track, me and Kerrie (wifey) went to a place called Brandon Marsh Nature Reserve, which is run by Warwickshire Wildlife Trust.

When our wildflowers grow, the path part of the trail will shrink back to about this size.

I feel confident that we are on the right track.

Buy-Me-A-Coffee/Patron:

We had a super generous buy-me-a-coffee donation of £25 from Monika, Wilson, & Angels Elsa, Norman & Sam. Monika and Wilson live in Colorado, and I enjoy reading their blog, hopefully as much as they enjoy reading mine.

Mental Health/Wellbeing:

Monika and Wilson’s friendship leads me onto the prickly subject of making friends, and more importantly, blokes making and maintaining a male friendship circle. I’ve got a lot of experience doing this, but I don’t know if this is the place to share it.

Let me know in the comments below if you would like me to touch on this thorny subject every week.

I would love to open our arms and say that anyone can join in with us, but we have to limit numbers due to the number of tools that we have and the amount of work to do.

Anyway, I hope that this blog is some sort of an example of how to develop a group of friends and kinda keep it moving. It’s so easy for us blokes to let friendships drift until they become just casual acquaintances at best.

However, I will leave it there.

Moving on, we have a tree that is in a bad way.

We need to work out how to get this out because it’s just going to get worse and worse. Nothing we like better than a challenge!!

Lastly, I did a litter pick after the workday.

Loads of half-empty beer cans around the quadrant. Maybe youngsters realising that lager tastes like pee….

Until next time!

Paul

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More Than Just a Path

Posted on September 9, 2026 by Paul - Cawston Greenway

This is supposed to be the fifth heatwave of the year… Or so the newspapers would have us believe.

Call me sceptical, but I am struggling to call this even warm???

Before we get into the day, I can share what ChatGPT thinks is going on in my head.

The text…

Don’t ask me how? It’s quite scary that my thoughts can be tapped into quite so easily…

George Orwell’s 1984 really is happening!!

Anyway, back to the here and now… We started cutting back in earnest today. Ram made the executive decision that we needed to go sideways and get the width, rather than focusing on trying to cover as much distance as possible.

We want a decent wildflower-rich grassy margin between the path and the scrub. Before long, we could see the method in Ram’s madness.

It started to look pretty good.

We broke for coffee and seemed to be back on the Oreo biscuits.

Reduced numbers today with Steve, Ram, Andrew, Martin, Reece, Dave, and Paul, but we managed OK.

And then the worst bit: tidying up. Made 100 times harder because muggins here couldn’t remember where we hid the rakes.

But we improvised and got all the cutting into a decent habitat-pile that will slowly rot down, producing warmth and shelter for a whole host of wildlife in the autumn and winter.

We finally got our first Mile Marker Post in. This is something that Martin and Dave have been working on and is really just a bit of a nod to the heritage of the trail, which was once a working railway. It also creates another avenue of interest for people to explore.

When they are all in place, I fully expect to see Strava Segments appearing and all sorts of personal bests being recorded.

This is a short explanation from Martin as to what the posts are all about.

In 1845, Parliament passed a law making it compulsory for railway companies to provide visible mileposts alongside the track. These came in a wide variety of designs and are still used on railways today. At least two of the originals are still present on the Cawston Greenway, lying in the undergrowth. We thought it would be good to put a full set back in, every quarter-mile, in the locations where the originals were. So in total we are installing seven, covering from 1½ to 3 miles. (Zero is at the junction with the Rugby – Birmingham line near the cement works).

Thanks, Martin and Dave, for making this happen.

We have a new tool, well, two actually. We splashed out on another hedge trimmer, so we have five now, and this beast.

It cost £133, so it wasn’t cheap, but boy-oh-boy, it cuts the higher branches like a hot knife through butter. The overhanging branches will stop the sunlight from hitting the newly cleared ground and make all of our efforts a total waste of time, so thank you to everyone who has helped us to purchase this new tool with lovely donations.

Buy Me A Coffee/Patron:

Whilst we are on the subject of donations, we had a very generous Buy Me a Coffee donation of £25 from Mike last week. Thank you very much.

Still loads going on in the background, but as you can see, things are starting to happen.

Here are a couple of quick “after” photos of what we did today.

Still a bit of a chunk of scrub that needs to go, but hopefully we can kinda see the trail shaping up.

Lastly, I did a quick litter-pick after the workday.

Nothing will wreck what we are doing more than litter… For me, it is just not conducive to a stress-free environment.

That’s about it for this week.

Until next time!

Paul

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And So It begins…

Posted on September 2, 2026 by Paul - Cawston Greenway

This is the start of the 2026/27 cutting-back season. What we do over the next six months will shape how the path looks for humans and wildlife in the spring and summer of 2027, so a bit of planning is required.

We also have our framework in the tab above, called September Jobs, where we split the trail into five sections and try to match the longer sections to months with five Wednesdays.

It worked really well last year, so we are following the same format.

As part of my intensive research, I felt that I had to spend a week in an actual forest to really understand what we are looking to emulate.

Notice the tree spacing, lack of lower branches, thriving understorey, and ground cover.

The Workday:

Despite my absence, the lads cracked on. Marcus, Reece, Dave, Matt, and Andrew turned out on a morning that was threatening rain!!

Me, being my usual muppet self, had not managed to organise passing the tools to the guys, so they had to make do with a selection of gardening implements.

Pushing back the scrub and brambles before breaking for coffee and cookies.

Loads of traffic along the path whilst schoolboys enjoyed climbing the mature oak trees. I didn’t think kids did this sort of thing anymore… They are all back to school later this week, so a last-gasp attempt at freedom.

More cutting back followed the coffee break.

Really nice to see that the greenway machine worked just as well without me being there, but also quite a weird feeling.

I really must learn to let go a bit…

Buy Me A Coffee/Patron:

Lovely donations from Shindi (£15) and Simon (£5 monthly sub) this week, and we also have Paul signing up as a Patron subscriber in the last month (£5/m). Thank you very much. We have a new tool, which these generous donations have gone towards. We will get it out next week and show everyone what it does. If you would like to help, just click on Buy Me A Coffee. It really does give us a warm fuzzy feeling inside.

Far Popehill Spinney and beyond:

Looking southwards, the Walk Wheel Cycle Trust are about to clear the path from Marton to Birdingbury.

This is the yellow-ringed section. They have already done the blue-ringed section.

There needs to be a tunnel built to get through this bit…

And hopefully we will get permission to work on the green-ringed bit on the map above.

The section between the yellow ring and the green ring is already a crushed limestone path surface, so potentially, we could have a through-path to Leamington by early next year, in one form or another…

Mile Marker Posts:

Another huge step forward by Martin and Dave.

All will become clear in a week or two.

I did the weekly litter pick the weekend before, and found a dead hedgehog. Bad news that it was dead, but good news that we have them.

We can contact Warwickshire Wildlife Trust and do a proper hedgehog survey in a couple of weeks to see what is happening.

Well, that’s about it for this week. Next week I shall be back from my all-expenses-paid “research” trip, and we can crack on…

And of course I’m joking about a paid holiday, before anyone gets their knickers in a twist. I don’t even get free coffee and biscuits on the workdays!

Until next time!

Paul

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Hawthorn Adventure Walk

Posted on August 26, 2026 by Paul - Cawston Greenway

There is a slight autumnal feel to the mornings, but still no rain, despite it being forecast for most of the day.

But despite the forecast, ten of us made it onto the path to get our Adventure Walk clear and usable.

Marcus, Steve, Dave, Ian, Reece, Matt, David, George, Martin, and Paul were let loose in the jungle and cleared a way through.

It was a slow start as we struggled to find our rhythm, and realised that if you cut one branch off a tree, then sometimes we have to cut another five because everything is so intertwined. We did make a nice hedge with all the cuttings, though.

The Hawthorn Adventure Trail is a 220-metre path that runs parallel to the main path. We hope that Mum and Dad can walk along the top path and the kids can go off exploring and adventuring, whilst still being in earshot.

We broke for coffee and biscuits at half-time.

Before really picking up the pace and starting to smash through it.

It just adds to the interest and hopefully keeps our appeal to as many people as possible.

I was going to do a video, but decided on photos. Hopefully it shows the trail.

We possibly need to flatten the ground in some areas, but that is a workday for the future.

It’s a nice alternative path, and we will keep working on it over the winter.

We also fixed a broken slat on one of our picnic benches. Not sure if this is vandalism or just wear and tear, but we have had no issues with naughty squirrels messing with the benches across the whole school summer holidays.

My bag of magic tricks soon had it back together whilst we find a bit of timber to make a new slat.

Dunchurch Bridleway:

Me and Andrew turned out last Friday to stain the benches and fix a picnic bench that had become a bit wobbly.

It keeps them fresh and welcoming.

We fixed the wobbly picnic bench.

And to our amazement, later on, someone doing the geocaching trail found the nearby cache, and then had lunch at the table.

It’s such a good feeling when things like this happen.

That’s about it for this week.

Until next time!

Paul

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One More Week…

Posted on August 19, 2026 by Paul - Cawston Greenway

Summer temperatures seem to have stabilised at around 25C (77F), so the days are a bit easier; however, we are still not getting much rain, so everything is as dry as a bone.

I think this will be the second blog post in a row where I am not wittering on about blooming benches. Yes, it has been noted that I seem to go on and on and on about the blasted things…

Arrgh… There I go again. It’s probably because every item of clothing that I own is covered in little blobs of brown from the constant restaining of them. Many people have nicknamed me Spotted Dick due to me always being covered in little speckles of pooh brown wood stain.

For some unfathomable reason, they tend to drop the first part and just call me by the last part of the name…

Anyway, back to it. Nine adventurers ventured out for what is the last but one week before we can really start to shape the path ready for next year. Ian, Reece, Marcus, Dave, Mark, Andrew, Ram, Steve and Paul started off just pushing the bramble back.

The usual “flop” into the path from all the nettles and wildflowers just hasn’t happened, so we don’t have much to go at.

We broke for lunch at half-time and enjoyed coffee and Maryland cookies.

Much chatter about the start of the 2026/27 football season, which begins this week. I can feel myself being dragged, kicking and screaming, into a football fan…

Up and down views are looking pretty good.

We cracked on with half an eye on what we want to be doing through Autumn and Winter.

Basically, we want the path width to be about 3 metres, the grassy wildflower strip to be about 2 metres either side of the path, and then scrub and trees towards the edges.

However, we need to raise the crowns of a lot of the trees so that there is a clear view underneath the canopy.

And just allow the sunlight to get to the ground.

We need a couple of Zubat pole saws to reach the slightly out-of-reach branches, so I will go out with a shopping list soon.

That’s about it for this week.

One interesting observation from me. Someone was going on about what the sauce of life is…

I was intrigued, so I asked ChatGPT.

Something interesting to ponder… I think we can tick off quite a few things with what we do on the greenway.

People who know me well will know that I am absolutely fanatical about men getting together and doing stuff. It drives me to distraction with the constant narrative that men should be lonely, uncommunicative, and basically put on the scrap heap at the age of 55+

It really does grind my gears, especially when I see men giving up and accepting some lonely existence, because everywhere they look, older men have sort of become marginalised and made to feel worthless.

So what we do every Wednesday and every other Friday is massively good fun and gets rid of all the rubbish rhetoric that men should be loners. But more importantly, I hope that it shows other men that there is stuff out there to give purpose to life and actually have a laugh.

I will jump off my soapbox for now…

And by the way, people don’t really call me Dick. Well, not to my face, anyway…

Until next time!

Paul

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The Heatwave Continues

Posted on August 12, 2026 by Paul - Cawston Greenway

I’ve come to the conclusion that the people who do the weather don’t actually have a clue…

Twice we have been promised rain, and it never showed up, and now it is hotter than ever!!

We have a scorching 36°C (97°F) tomorrow. It’s simply unheard of here in good old Blighty.

But despite the desire to jump into the nearest lake, nine sun-worshipping superheroes turned out. Ram, Steve, Ian, Dave, Matt, Reece, David, Mark, and Paul.

We’ve got today and two more weeks left before the Bird Nesting Season ends, and we can start cutting back in earnest. To be honest, we’re kicking our heels a bit whilst we wait to get going.

Today we just carried on keeping the sides of the path clear and stopping any bramble from entering the space made for humans. The usual “flop” from all the vegetation has not really happened because everything has flowered, died and turned to brittle stems.

We want to seriously reduce the scrub over the winter and have wildflower-rich grassy banks up the sides.

We broke for coffee and biscuits at half-time.

Why muggins here brought hot coffee in the middle of a heatwave is anyone’s guess…

Nice views up and down the path, though.

We cracked on after the “refreshments”.

We can see from the photos that we need to do a lot of tree thinning. Nothing is going to grow to maturity when everything is competing for nutrients, space, and light.

We did our usual clearing around our picnic benches to keep everyone safe from critters.

Nobody wants ants in their pants…

Whilst all the hard work goes on along the path, there are a myriad of other things happening in the background.

This is the production of Mile Marker Posts, by Dave and Martin, that will be inserted in the autumn. It’s a nod to the railway heritage and history, and just our way of bringing the past into the here-and-now.

Dunchurch Bridleway:

Three of us made it last Friday: Ian, Dave, and Paul, and we pushed back the most westerly bit on the path.

One thing that we really need to keep on top of is sprouts from the trunks of trees.

From my perspective, it just isn’t a good look.

We had coffee and biscuits, as per usual.

And litter-picked the whole path.

When we can, we like to leave what is called standing dead wood. Trees that have died, but are still upright.

It creates habitat for a load of wildlife that is not so keen on using trunks that have fallen to the ground.

Who knew?? Certainly not me until I started spending time with wildlife experts and watching forestry videos on YouTube every week.

Taking us back out to the whole path network, we’re getting close to fully connecting with everything soon.

This is 12 miles away at the other end of the path and is called Offchurch Greenway. At some point, we will be connected.

And whilst I have been busy typing away, we have had a solar eclipse…

Possibly just a little reminder that with all the man-made problems in the World at the moment, time, nature, and the Universe just keep marching on regardless.

Until next time!

Paul

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