Camp report Wey & Arun

Our specialist Forestry Team brought their chainsaws to bear on the dieback-infected ash trees of Sussex’s canalsides. John Hawkins reports...

Wey & Arun Canal WRG Forestry Team camp

Our main summer Canal Camps programme may have come to an end some time ago, but we do have one Camp Report in this issue – thanks to our specialist WRG Forestry Team, who generally work outside the summer nesting season, and hold their annual week-long camp in the autumn. This year it was on the Wey & Arun Canal, where the waterside trees have been suffering badly from the dreaded Ash dieback disease. John Hawkins reports…

A sunny week in West Sussex

On Friday late afternoon / early evening folks started to arrive for the Forestry Camp in readiness for a good start on the Saturday morning.

By Friday evening the trailer and van were unpacked, items checked and arranged in Kirdford Village Hall, our accommodation for the week. There followed a general safety talk and some ‘pointers’ for later discussion on site.

Saturday morning: on site, when all had gathered for the week, we had a site safety talk by Dave Evans

(no, not WRG’s Dave ‘Evvo’ Evans - the Wey & Arun Canal Trust’s own Dave Evans!); and a site walk – a long site a little north of Loxwood Lock to Devils Hole Lock, just on the Sussex side of the Surrey/Sussex border and on part of the ‘Loxwood Link’ restored length used regularly for WACT trip-boat operations.

The work was mainly the removal of some overhanging / dead oak branches, dense areas of brambles, and Ash trees affected by Ash dieback disease.

WACT machinery available for use was a fairly new 5-tonne JCB excavator fitted with a grab and a very neatly fitted tow-ball (more of which later), a chipper and a 13tonne excavator. The Trust had also hired in a MEWP (mobile elevating work platform) - a great machine. A couple of work boats and the ‘Aquadock’ floating pontoon dock were also available.

Saturday and Sunday work was mainly around the Devils Hole Lock, felling some dead trees and cutting into specified lengths: these also had to be fairly straight. They were then stacked in readiness for later collection. The remaining branches and brash were either burnt, put into piles for habitat or put to one side for logging. All of the following days were spent on other sections of the canal, both towpath side and offside.

The MEWP was put to good use removing several quite large branches that were in danger of falling onto passing boats. This operation also involved the use of the larger excavator, putting a strop around the branch to be cut so that it could be removed from the water. An ‘interesting’ operation with both machines working together. Some of these sections were then put through the chipper.

Meanwhile, on the towpath side, ash trees were being felled and dragged out for stripping and cutting to length. If they were too large/heavy the excavator was put to good use. The cut lengths were put to one side.

The main group of volunteers then moved further along the towpath so that Dave could ‘tidy up’ the cut lengths. A short four-wheeled trailer was attached to the aforementioned tow-ball, then using the grab the cut lengths were placed in the trailer. This progressed along the towpath gathering the cut lengths and thus forming one main