Topping Out

By ‘C’

It is not often that we get to see the next working-party in action when we’ve left them a little bit to do; but when site wardens are unavailable, sometimes we get to come out to play again.

I was back on site at Aston Rowant NNR for the second time in a week.  This time my role was to act as guide to Sonning Common Green Gym, as they set about carrying on (maybe finishing off?) a thistle-topping task.  The DIY weather-forecast the night before had not been quite as promising:

At least conditions starting off overcast made for cooler temperatures during the morning.  It certainly remained dry.

Visiting another Green Gym is always interesting.  For one thing, each has its own group dynamic.  And for another, one can learn a thing or two from the way other people set about the same task in a different way.  Sonning Common GG have a set of kit which we don’t (yet) possess:

These direction-signs were duly placed at ‘junctions’ on the way down to the working area, so that any latecomers would be able to find their way to the session.  First critical choice to make at the RV point: choose the correct footpath from several which head out from the car-park.

The path running closest to, and in parallel with the line of the motorway is the right one.  Depressingly, the same litter is visible (black plastic bag background left: not difficult to guess what’s inside) exactly where I had been irritated by it last time.

The path then runs down a gradient.  This is fine when it’s “hi-ho time”, going off to work; but of course what goes down, must come up eventually – a steep climb at the end of the session to get back to the car:

Along the way was a glimpse of where we were going (and the target):

If only we could have just hopped over the fence!  As it was, the route continued along and around:

Indignant Sonning-Common Green-Gymmer: “We cleared along here!”

SCGG colleague: “Yes, but that was a while ago.  Nature has a way of growing back.”

Besides those points where there was an obvious choice of path to take, the way-marker boards proved especially useful where it was not so obvious which way site-workers – as opposed to site-walkers – were supposed to go:

Photo of the route taken on the way back: note the sun had come out by then

Continuing from where Wallingford Green Gym had left off on Tuesday, today’s task included working on the hillside (the artificial cutting) high above the motorway:

It fell to a Sonning-Common volunteer to have the honour of taking out the topmost thistle:

A bonus for those of us working the hillside was that we got to see more of the chalk-down wildflowers:

I myself had brought along the loppers which I had thought on Tuesday would be just the thing for some of the stubborn specimens holding out on the slope.  When that portion of the task had been completed (well done, SCGG!) I made to wend my way home.  I had, after all, fulfilled my role as guide to the party. 

On the return leg, I stopped briefly to record the progress made so far that day:

Before (08:55)

‘After’ (12:03) – bearing in mind that SCGG sessions generally continue to 2/2.30 pm