A Flying Start to 2009

After 2008 ended disappointingly with a spate of graffiti on the Etwall bridges, 2009 started with more promise.
No less than ten Rangers turned up for our first workday of the year to further the work on making our Veteran Tree a prominent feature of Route 54 at Mickleover.
The ground around the tree was finally cleared and work was started preparing the bank opposite for a seat where the public can sit to view the tree. What better way to relax on a sunny afternoon, but to sit and look at a tree such as this old oak which has been there for 300 years and is likely to remain long after we have all gone to the Rangers Rest Home.
The bank is in an ideal position, being several feet above track level, and we have installed steps (made from old railway sleepers) to give inviting access to the seat.
In Peter Roberts' photographs, the top one shows the view from the bank and the lower one Keith Lycett admiring the work done on the steps.
The seat will be positioned to the right of where Keith is standing.

Thanks to Peter Ford, Geoff Hume, Keith Lycett, Phil Harris, Phil Harries, Adam Harries, Peter Roberts, Ian Dent, and most of all, Mavis Ratcliffe, who supplied the team with most welcome hot drinks, chocolate biscuits and Battenburg Cake, which kept us going for another hour or two before terminal exhaustion set in.