November Working Weekend video & photos.

posted by keith vingoe on Thu, 01/12/2011 - 00:00

The November working weekend concentrated on clearance of the picnic area at Rowley Cross. Tea, Coffee and hot lunches were provided to the hardy volunteers on both Saturday and Sunday.

The instructions were: "Muster at Woody Bay for 10am if late proceed directly to site. Recommend being suitably dressed for heavy-duty gardening with stout boots (preferably wellingtons) and clothing. Tree loppers and saws optional." Twenty to Thirty people turned up each day - some did all three!

In addition to the work at Rowley Cross / Holwell Bank, at Woody Bay Santa’s Grotto was erected and the tea rooms were hung with Christmas decorations.

Many thanks to members from the Isle of Wight, Dorset, London area, Surrey and Kent, aided by some locals, of course!

Also, thanks to L&B Catering Manager Judy Williams for providing an excellent hot lunch on both Saturday and Sunday.

Further Working weekends are to be held in January and March, dates to be confirmed. Pete Snashall or Martyn Budd 01598 763746 Mob: 07966 436403 for further details.

Some photos taken by Dave Tooke soon after work started on the Friday:

1: View from access path, below the car park, looking toward Parracombe.

2: Looking back toward Blackmoor, from halfway across embankment.

3: Cutting at far end of our section of trackbed, looking toward Parracombe.

(Although we do not yet own this section, Martyn Budd had obtained permission from the owner so that we could clear this.)

What a difference a couple of days makes: These were taken on Sunday:

4: Similar viewpoint to photo 1.

5: The hollow to the south of the embankment, with the A39 in the trees beyond, and the picnic area visible upper-right.

6: Similar viewpoint to photo 3.

PS: The embankment of the A39 at this point, and presumably therefore also of the railway, was known as “Holwell Bank”, according to the article on building the by-pass, in L&BR Magazine No. 84.

Photos and words by Dave Tooke

These from Pete Snashall

1. Tea Break - We had in excess of 20 people on site each day. Conservatively, probably over 400 man hours worked.

2. The excavator still earning its keep - 1

3. The excavator still earning its keep - 2

4. The remains of a Plate-Layers Hut.

5. Talking Point.

Job Done - 1.

Job Done - 2.

Some more photos - this time from new L&B Member and 1st time volunteer Peter Nicholas from Gloucester

1. A Full Car Park                           2. Philip Beard and Steve Castle

3. & 4.Tackling the undergrowth .......

5. 6. & 7. The flail making short work of the brushwood

8. Looking towards Rowley Cross Bridge at the site of the cattle creep

9. & 10.Still tackling the undergrowth .......

11. & 12. Making inroads.......

13. & 14. At the Parracombe end of the cutting - the grass is the trackbed.

15. Beginning to look like a railway........ 16. Although a bit damp in places

17. The cutting looking something like           18. SR concrete fencing

19. before and..............                     20. After

20. Ali Hall, Steve Orchard and Steve Castle enjoy a well-earned tea-break.

These just in from Nigel Thompson Sunday 27th November

1. Alistair Hall cuts up a fallen tree from the trackbed on the embankment.

2.. Passing one of the three bonfires today was the L&B's excavator which was on site over the weekend to assist moving the large tree trunks off the trackbed to be cut up for logs.