Workday Leader Matthew reports on the day the clocks went back:….
Well, what a fabulous day! Great weather, good company, cake to die for and plenty of cutting and burning to tackle. What more does an SSNTV volunteer want?
We were asked to thin an area on the heath, just the other side of the main field where the war memorial stands. The idea was to take away young birch and not-so-young bracken and gorse which were taking over an area where the resident adders like to bask in the sun. No doubt the adders will be pleased with our work and will be able to top up their tans come Spring!
It was Leela’s first visit to Kinver and she was impressed by the site, but a little wary of the talk of snakes. Fortunately, in spite of the sunny weather, all the adders were fast asleep and did not make an appearance. In fact we left a thick border around the clearance site to deter human visitors from entering after we had left.
It was ranger Kyra’s first workday back with us since the arrival of her son – another redhead apparently! She took up where she left off, impressing us with her off-road driving skills bringing the truck and trailer right into the clearance site. The cuttings were then transported near to the Rangers’ Yard for burning by eager volunteers (at Kinver we often do not burn in situ). Kyra also impressed with her home-made cakes, handing out cake of quality and quantity too. Thanks for that!
To round off the day, the new local English Longhorn cattle called in to say hello and inspect our work. We got a few ‘moos’, presumably meaning that they were pleased – but I think they were actually just after some cake!
Shropshire and Staffordshire National Trust Volunteers 