Attack this?!?! Poor soldiers! Hardest task so far!!
Our nature conservation task took us to Corfe Castle. A little while ago we thought we had our hardest task there as we were cutting gorse on a steep slope.... guess what: today’s task was even harder: a steeper slope on another side of the natural mount, cutting hawthorn entwined with brambles and old man’s beard ( the name of the lichen). This meant that it was very difficult to find your footing (steep, muddy and slippery) as well as sawing trees, which would not fall over as they were still hanging on by bramble branches and bits of old man’s beard. This meant lopping above your head, then avoiding the whole hooha coming down on top of you.... I have a bruised thumb, bruised knees and a bruised buttock (sitting down on a sawn off stump doesn’t make for softness!). What a super day again! Loved it, esp. each time I managed to cut something down and kicking it (while sliding down on my booty) till it rolled downhill! Felt like a victory each time!
The ranger said: can you imagine what it must have been like for soldiers trying to besiege and attack this place?! I definitely could at the end of the day.
Bit of history? Here goes:
Corfe Castle was built by William the Conqueror in the eleventh century, but even before that, in 978, King Edward the Martyr was murdered on this very spot by his stepmother! Since William the Conqueror’s time it remained a royal castle till the reign of Elisabeth I. The natural mound was an ideal location for defending the castle against enemies, of which there were many. Finally in the English Civil War (1642-1651) it was besieged and destroyed! And has stood as a ruin overlooking the beautiful surroundings ever since then.
Photo: top left: the view at the end of the day as we were clearing gorse from the footpath, bottom left: my first tree this morning, right pic: STEEP steep hill with me attacking the hawthorn and bramble!
Attack this?!?! Poor soldiers! Hardest task so far!!
Our nature conservation task took us to Corfe Castle. A little while ago we thought we had our hardest task there as we were cutting gorse on a steep slope.... guess what: today’s task was even harder: a steeper slope on another side of the natural mount, cutting hawthorn entwined with brambles and old man’s beard ( the name of the lichen). This meant that it was very difficult to find your footing (steep, muddy and slippery) as well as sawing trees, which would not fall over as they were still hanging on by bramble branches and bits of old man’s beard. This meant lopping above your head, then avoiding the whole hooha coming down on top of you.... I have a bruised thumb, bruised knees and a bruised buttock (sitting down on a sawn off stump doesn’t make for softness!). What a super day again! Loved it, esp. each time I managed to cut something down and kicking it (while sliding down on my booty) till it rolled downhill! Felt like a victory each time!
The ranger said: can you imagine what it must have been like for soldiers trying to besiege and attack this place?! I definitely could at the end of the day.
Bit of history? Here goes:
Corfe Castle was built by William the Conqueror in the eleventh century, but even before that, in 978, King Edward the Martyr was murdered on this very spot by his stepmother! Since William the Conqueror’s time it remained a royal castle till the reign of Elisabeth I. The natural mound was an ideal location for defending the castle against enemies, of which there were many. Finally in the English Civil War (1642-1651) it was besieged and destroyed! And has stood as a ruin overlooking the beautiful surroundings ever since then.
Photo: top left: the view at the end of the day as we were clearing gorse from the footpath, bottom left: my first tree this morning, right pic: STEEP steep hill with me attacking the hawthorn and bramble!