In the past, if the Trust had a problem with any fallen trees that needed some chainsaw work before the branches could be moved, we could call on the services of one of our members, Andy Martin, a qualified tree surgeon, to help us out. Unfortunately, from the point of view of the Trust, Andy retired a couple of years ago and let his certification lapse so we were no longer able to rely on him.
Thanks to a grant from WRG, two work party members, Mel Sowerby and Steve Hayes, were able to go on a chainsaw maintenance and cross-cutting course which has given them the skills and certification to carry out the work. The course took place on March 11th and 12th but was slightly problematic as the first practical session had to be delayed because the very high winds made it unsafe to work in the woods. The second day was more favourable so they were able to complete the tasks successfully and achieve the required standard. There was comment that those high winds would probably have given them opportunity to practise their new skills in the near future.