Picnic Area

Posted on October 17, 2019 by Paul - Cawston Greenway

Our new picnic area is starting to shape-up. In my mind’s eye, I can see exactly how this area needs to look.  

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To get wildflowers to grow we need plenty of sunshine. The bench also needs to be in sunshine, or it will become damp and eventually covered in moss or lichen. So Aaron, Marcus, and myself went about clearing scrub and removing branches to create windows to allow the sunlight to hit the bare ground.

We also had to pull out the bramble roots to stop the scrub returning.

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Fantastic exercise and very rewarding!!

We want two more deep scallops cutting into the scrub between the benches…  

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…and then marry the area up to the mini wildflower patch that we created last year.

Possibly in December when everything is in slumber, we can look at how we can bring the reed-bed into play and this just adds to the biodiversity of the area.

Next week we are building a simple stile over the newt fence. We have various lengths of timber that are about 22mm thick and 110mm wide so that should be strong enough to create an approximately 300mm stile.

So next week, electric drills and screwdrivers, woodscrews, a saw, some postfix, a spade, and a bucket will be required!!

Great day today. Loads of banter and cracking on with the task in hand. Decent coffee and cookies, too.

Paul

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Steps Issue

Posted on October 10, 2019 by Paul - Cawston Greenway

Unfortunately, we have had to have our new path temporarily closed.

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The issue is this – the developers, by law, have to protect any newts that might reside on the greenway. This means that they have to put up a newt fence to keep them off the housing development. Because I have never seen a newt on the greenway, I kinda smashed through the newt fence to create our exit. I didn’t even consider the consequences. However, this puts the developers in an impossible situation because it means they are breaking the law.

Hence the fence.

There are solutions and hopefully, we can work something out like this…

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Nothing was done with intentional damage or malice, and I am sorry for all the upset that I have caused for loads of people!!

So, Marcus, Aaron, Reece, and myself rocked up to try and get the project moving the right way again.

The steps look fantastic and all of this workday was about up on the top.

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At the top of the steps, we want to position a picnic bench and start a wildflower mini-meadow. 

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As you can see from the slideshow, the steps start where the greenway breaks out of a wooded path and turns to scrubby bramble. We want to scallop most of this scrub back and seed with Corn Cockle, Corn Chamomile, Cornflower, Corn Marigold and Field Poppy.

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This will create an amazing blast of colour and bring in so much wildlife.

Onwards and upwards!!

Paul
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We Promised and We Delivered…

Posted on October 6, 2019 by Paul - Cawston Greenway

map of potsford dam new path

We wanted to steer people away from the almost sheer drop, down the side of the Potsford Dam bridge, and instead have a far safer exit point onto Trussell Way.

Whilst we had an idea of trying to incorporate the reed-bed into the route down, it soon became apparent that we were just repacing one danger with another. Downward slopes with water at the bottom are an accident waiting to happen!

So, Martin, Tim, Marcus and myself set about making a safe path out onto the new part of Trussell Way and an attractive circular walk that stays on the Cawston side of the Coventry Road.

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Down we go…

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Lots of back-filling to keep everything in place. 

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From the existing path, the new steps start as the coppice turns to scrubby bramble. 

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We felt that it would be worthwhile scalloping a lot of the scrub and extending the wildflower patch. This means the woodland walk suddenly breaks out into wildflower meadow, with views across Lawford Heath, and the reed-bed on the other side with dragonflies and damsels doing their thing. We have a couple of spare picnic benches that we can add. This will encourage people to stop and enjoy the wildlife and views.

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My new furry friend. I am slowly getting over my fear of dogs, thanks to all the dog walkers who have patiently let me get to know their dogs.

Lastly, I cannot emphasise enough, how just meeting up and doing stuff on the greenway, creates such a mental feel-good factor. Everyone is welcome and everyone brings something to add to the group. Give us a try sometime over the cutting-back season. I am sure you will not regret it.

Paul

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Last Summer Workday

Posted on September 19, 2019 by Paul - Cawston Greenway

It was the last summer workday in 2019, and also, probably the last time that we will go beyond Potsford Dam.

The reason for this is because Sustrans are putting in an off-road cycle path from Potsford Dam to Leamington, so our services will no longer be required past this point.

https://rugbyobserver.co.uk/news/new-traffic-free-route-set-for-cycle-network-linking-rugby-and-leamington

There is the elusive Right of Way called R168x which runs from the greenway, somewhere from the section between Potsford Dam and Dunchurch railway station, to Dunchurch Bridleway R168. This trail is another project that I am currently working on so keep your eyes peeled if you’re interested.

R168 and R168x

Anyhow, this week Marcus, Aaron, and myself snipped back the shrubbery so that anyone using the path has a clear run before the path naturally clears.

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Next week we hope to start building the steps down to the reed-bed. Once we get access to the reed-bed we can start to encourage dragonflies and damselflies. It will be very interesting, from a wildlife point-of-view.

Wildflowers spotted: 

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Until next week!

Paul

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Bilton Grange Takeover

Posted on September 12, 2019 by Paul - Cawston Greenway

With 22 (I think) youngsters from Bilton Grange Preparatory School in Dunchurch, taking over this week, I was a little apprehensive, to say the least!

However, they all worked very hard and very well together.

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Digging new steps down to the reed-bed

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Snipping back bramble runners

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Sampling blackberries

You can see in the background, the initiative task – The very task that has had me flummoxed every time I have tried to put the thing up!! 

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No such trouble for these youngsters!

A great morning and I hope that we can do it again at some point.

A taster for next month…

I am trying to develop a path from Dunchurch to the greenway – Dunchurch Greenway…

Dunchurch Greenway

It will be a totally off-road 1.5 mile greenway that connects just before the old Dunchurch railway station.

Paul

 

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Winter Project

Posted on August 21, 2019 by Paul - Cawston Greenway

Today, Marcus, Reece and myself just scoped out what we need to do over the winter to get the reed-bed and the wildflower meadow working together around bench #4.

Here is a screen-grab of the area.

reedbed path greenway

The red oval is where people are currently getting on and off. Massively steep and hugely dangerous if someone takes a tumble and ends up on the road at the bottom.

The red line shows a new path dropping down the bank, circumnavigating the reed-bed and the Victorian aqueduct, and then reaching across the dry ground and following the fence-line out onto the new development.

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Going down.

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Looking up, this needs to be steps.

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Reed-bed.

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Inching along.

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Aqueduct.

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And out.

It’s going to take a lot of work to get this right, and then grow scrub over the old path to deter people from using it. However, we have a good six-month window to work on it, so there is no need for us to rush. It will be better to do a quality job.

The reason for dropping down where we are, is so that the reed-bed is accessible and we can start to clear it and help it to flourish. It also compliments the other side of the path up on the bank, which is our little mini-meadow of wildflowers.

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Not forgetting of course, that it creates a lovely circular walk that is just in Cawston, rather than taking people through the woods.

A well deserved cuppa and cookie at the end of a tough day!

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Back on it next week!

Paul

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Come Rain or Shine…

Posted on August 15, 2019 by Paul - Cawston Greenway

..the show must go on!!

Well, that is what I kept thinking as Marcus and myself got thoroughly drenched on this week’s workday.

But another section snipped back and kept clear for all of our users. So it was well worth the effort.

Trying to amuse myself with photos from the top of the bridge and then the same view from under the bridge. It was that sort of a day… However, we now have a couple of more productive workdays lined up where we can work on the slope down to the reed-bed and try to develop the circular walk, on the Cawston side of the Potsford Dam bridge, that doesn’t entail having to slide down the savage slope on our backsides!! 

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Another dreary wet shot across the heath…

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Lastly, I cannot see any signs of life in our bat-boxes. I think we need to bite-the-bullet and modify them. I have put in on the list for September.

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At least the coffee and cookies provided a bit of relief from the rain!!

Until next time!

Paul

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Seek and you will find…

Posted on August 8, 2019 by Paul - Cawston Greenway

The wildflower plant ID app (Seek) that David from Sustrans told us about is really coming into its own.

The purists might say that we are cheating and should be scouring books and ID guides, but a lot of what I am seeing and recognising via the app, is actually going into my head and I am retaining it. Half the time, I am just using the app to confirm my first thoughts, so that must be a good thing…?

Today, Marcus, Aaron, Kieran and myself cut back anything trying to jump across the trail, from the underpass to Berrybanks, after Aaron buzzed any low-lying growth with a strimmer.

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This is definitely the lull before the storm. In the autumn we need to cut back the overhanging trees in this section and get some sunlight onto the path.

The banks are doing a pretty good job of looking after themselves though, with a mass of wildflowers, butterflies, damselflies and bees. At some point however, we will need to establish a cutting regime on a three-year cycle, or it will all just turn to unmanaged scrub again. We can work out which 1/3 sections to clear back in September and then create five or so deep scallops across the winter season.

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It’s pretty amazing when we think about the man-hours invested in this section to initially clear it. As soon as we have our benches at either end it will be ‘job done’ and another section that we can be rightly proud of, as we just manage the scrub.

Wildflowers Spotted:

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There are plenty more but just no time to really get into a wildflower or insect hunt today.

Great coffee and cookie break today. There seems to be so much going on and loads to talk about, both with the greenway, the various projects that are linked to it, and the extended path to Leamington Spa and beyond.

All will be revealed as and when things start to come to fruition.

Paul

 

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Another Day at the Office

Posted on August 1, 2019 by Paul - Cawston Greenway

Victoria, Tom, Marcus and myself managed to cover about half a mile on the trail today. We started at the underpass and worked southwards to the Drummond Road entrance.

We are just keeping bramble runners off the path and picking up any litter at this time of the year.

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Up and down shots looking good.

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I did indulge myself in a little bit of wildlife habitat creation.

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We need to thin the young trees all along this section to get as much dappled sunlight onto the path as possible.

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Our coffee and cookie break was on-the-hoof again, due to no benches on this stretch, but we have a plan, so watch this space.

Loads of people using the path with many showing an interest in joining in. Lots of benefits in doing so and plenty of different things to engage with.

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In September we are making an insect hotel to enhance the area around bench #2. This adds another layer of interest and biodiversity.

Here is how to make one…

With this in mind, we need to start collecting logs, bricks, bamboo canes, and anything else that creates nooks, crannies and burrowing holes.

Bench #1 has our bird-feeders, bench #2 will be the insect hotel and bird-boxes, bench #3 is our living hedgerow and bench #4 is our wildflower mini-meadow and reed-bed. It’s a pretty diverse and interesting run of different habitats to enjoy.

Until next time!

Paul

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Thank Heavens For The Coffee

Posted on July 28, 2019 by Paul - Cawston Greenway

Well, that was another twenty or so minutes of my life that I will never get back as, once again, I tried and failed to put up our basecamp tarp.

At one point, a passer-by enquired, “What’s it going to be?” I really couldn’t answer because I had become a wrapped-up mess of tent-poles, guy-ropes and a blooming tarpaulin that thought it was a spinnaker in the 2019 Around The World Yachting Final!!

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So I packed up the basecamp kit, cracked open the coffee and comfort-ate all the biscuits, as I stood there in the drizzle, before stomping off northwards with my shears.

I managed to snip back loads of bramble runners, eagerly reaching out onto the path, for about half a mile.

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It also gave me a chance to think about where we are heading with the wildflower meadowy bits.

The annuals will only come up next year if we cultivate the ground. I would rather do that just on the edges and let the grass and perennials develop into a decent wildlife-rich meadow that flip-flops either side of the path. That way we get to keep the scrub and bramble that already plays host to many insects and small mammals, and add-to rather than replace what is already there.

I stopped off at the bird-feeder clearing and watched for activity. Plenty of which there was, but it was people rather than wildlife.

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Lovely to see families walking and enjoying the path though, even in the rain!!

Wildflowers Spotted:

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All-in-all, a decent morning despite the early frustrations.

Paul

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