Sculpture in the making

Chosen ~200 year old ash

A request from a sculptor for a substantial piece of wood for a project related to Nelson Mandela is to be satisfied by a recently felled ash at Sherborne's Pleasure grounds. So todays first task with Mike was to cut the above ash into suitable lengths {~2m} each weighing in at  ~ 2 tons! Quite a challenge to cut through this size of tree but Mike was up to the challenge. Fortunately the tree was on flatish ground so I didn't have to worry about Mike or me being crushed by the wood if it rolled our way. Needless to say even we were not strong enough to load this monster onto the trailer something Mike will deal with using his tractor and a suitable load bearing trailer later. Feeling confident Mike turned his attention to cutting up a nearby sycamore tree almost as large as the ash but on more of a slope. Tricky but again the job was completed safely.  I ought to stress both these magnificent trees were previously felled by tree surgeons because of serious damage.  Such mature wood will provide useful revenue for the trust.

We moved on from here to the East Belt to complete the excellent work carried out by the 'ANTS' plus M&M removing Laurel and giving the opportunity for some healthy ground level plant growth.

Locals putting me under pressure

The challenges of the day weren't quite over as Mike had one more clearing job to do at the bottom end of the Pleasure grounds in an area called the 'Bowling alley'.  A large limb had dropped off a beech tree falling down over the Ha ha ditch and over the stock fence. Before we could reach the area I had to open a gate with an awkward lock and then lock it again once Mike had driven through. The audience above, especially the bull,  did make me a little nervous but I managed. We arrived at the site where quite a bit of clearing of brash was needed before Mike could access the large limb which was leaning upright against the beech trunk and resting on the ditch bottom. This was not an easy chainsaw job, not least because of the lack of space on the Ha ha wall where Mike had to do some of the cutting. However with the aid of some rope and extreme care the Beech was blocked up and loaded onto the trailer. The Ha ha wall sustained some damaged but was 'gently' pushed back into alignment. Good job done so we headed back up the field to the exit gate. The herd however were clearly keen on again putting me under pressure and started running from their quiet grazing back towards the gate. This included the Bull but fortunately I unlocked the gate in record time and managed to close it before too close an acquaintance. Was Mike smiling, all I know is he was happy to be driving and not leaving the vehicle.  

One small job to do before end of play but this was helping out one of the locals and included some refreshment and pleasant local engagement.