Saturday 10th January 2026

Mass turnout today with  Alex, Andy, Chris, Dick, Ian, Lawrence, Robert, Trina, Paul, Sally and Simon.  Welcome to Simon on his first session at lineside clearance.

Freezing cold start to the day (I had to pour a coffee over the container padlock to get in) and no Isuzu which was off for repair so it was a bit of a struggle with one of the new vehicles.  Still the team was all on site by 0930 and we made good progress through the day.  Sarah Clayton (Infrastructure Manager) also visited with another potential recruit.

Ian and I were on chainsaws with Ian taking out the last of the tall trees at the top of the bank.  The main team ended up running two bonfires and getting rid of most of the cut wood.  There are now several piles of cut hawthorn logs ready for anyone who wants them by the side of the fence.  The bank itself is quite slippery as the ground thaws out so care needs to be taken.

Work drew to a close at about 2:30pm in brilliant sunshine under a clear blue sky, quite a difference from the start.  It seems disappointing we are only about 30% along the bank but we have the rest of the winter / early spring to see how far we can get.  Same again next week.

Lawrence Harvey


Bonfires on the go


View from the top of the bank


Great end of day photo courtesy of Chris



Comments

  1. RogerJanuary 11, 2026 at 4:28 AM

    Just discovered your blog - welcome back! Where is this? Viaduct?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. GWSR LinesideJanuary 11, 2026 at 4:37 AM

      Hi Roger, no, it's the bank on the Cotswolds side of the railway just past Gretton by Mrs Townsend's stables.

      Delete
    2. RogerJanuary 11, 2026 at 10:57 AM

      Thank you. I started on lineside there back in 2007. Happy days!

      Delete

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