A belated thanks to the North Chiltern Path Maintenance Volunteers (NCPMV) who, in August, cleared a section of the Icknield Way in Sewell just north of Dunstable, Bedfordshire. Map 3 of the Icknield Way Walkers Guide.
The volunteer group is run by the Chiltern Society and does path improvement activities across the Chilterns. If you would like to join them, see further information on the Chiltern Society website.
As can be seen from the photos they had a good day clearing back overgrown vegetation. Our thanks go to Phil and the team.
“Work was carried out on two overgrown sections of footpath HR24 (Chiltern Way and Icknield Way). The first section from Sewell Lane to the field edge, vegetation was cleared and where possible the 1.5m width was restored. Overhanging branches were removed. We were thanked by the landowners on either side of the path.
The section from the other side of the field involved some vegetation clearance and removal of small dead trees and overhanging branches. The surface of the path is very uneven due to numerous potholes mainly caused by historic rabbit burrowing, some of these were infilled which by itself was a challenge as the ground was rock hard. Some care was taken on this second section as the attending and grateful landowners wanted very little clearance towards their boundary on the right hand side of the path. The main work was therefore carried out on the field, left hand, side of the path.
Work was also carried out on the stiles either side of the field to remove ivy and encroaching vegetation. The tops of the upright posts were painted yellow to make it more visible to walkers crossing the field.” These stiles are two of only four stiles on the whole of the 110miles of the Icknield Way walkers route.
