Many sections of the Cleveland Way are falling into the sea, to try to prevent walkers doing the same, some sections need to be fenced. www.nationaltrail.co.uk/clevelandway Today that is the task for Coasties. The section we are doing is particularly well used, as we discover as we carry out the work, just south of Whitby.
There is consternation when we learn that some one's car has broken down, he and his passenger have got lunch for several of us!
The fence is rusting and bits have already broken off, some posts are almost hanging over the edge. So the worst lengths of the wire fence are prised off, the staples apparently super glued into the posts, in some areas thick roots have trapped the bottom strand of wire. We work in short stretches as obviously we can't leave long lengths unprotected. The new fence sections are stapled back, tensioned and then fully fixed to the posts, some of which have been moved away from the edge, this makes the path narrower, but a lot safer!
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| a section of the old fence |
Just before midday our lunch party arrives, they make themselves useful before we break to eat their supplies. Afterwards we carry on, we don't get the whole stretch done, that will have to wait for another day.
The purists will think that a fence should not be provided at all on this lovely, wild bit of coastline; once I might have agreed, but on balance I now think it should, it is very close to a town and holiday sites, many people use it who might never otherwise get to walk anywhere except in a local park. It is, crucially, also subject to constant erosion. There are parts of the coast, more remote, where no protection is provided, it is all a question of checks and balances.
There is a moment of real excitement, a peregrine falcon flies at great speed up the coast, only just off the edge of the cliffs, even the regular bird watchers have never seen one so close.
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| just the posts |
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| the new fence |
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