Upper Wensleydale

Based at the Dales Countryside Museum in Hawes, Upper Wensleydale Area Ranger Matt Neale's area includes Semer Water (Raydale), Bainbridge, Hawes, Widdale and Lunds.

His work includes conservation projects such as an on-going project with red squirrels. Here he is - see picture left - out doing some woodland conservation work.

Matt also manages the rights of way network in the area and the large tracts of access land which have become accessible to walkers this year, through the Countryside and Rights of Way (CRoW) Act 2000.

Michael Briggs - pictured right - became an Access Ranger in the Yorkshire Dales in 2001.

His work involves the maintenance of footpaths, bridleways and byways including their surfaces, infrastructure and river crossings. He also monitors the use of Open Access land by patrolling areas, speaking to walkers and assessing the level of use, and is involved in the red squirrel project.

Michael is supported by many volunteers who use their own time to assist with practical work, patrolling and surveying and squirrel monitoring.

Projects

Willow Spilling - Riverbank Protection Project
This work has been carried out above Aysgill Force on Gayle Beck, near Gayle, where a public footpath running parallel to the river along the top of the bank was eroding. The erosion was initially caused by cattle poaching and flash flooding.

The maintenance project provided an alternative to 'hard' engineering bank repair schemes. Willow binders were woven between stakes (oak stakes in this case, as willow was to soft to knock into the riverbed) along the line of the eroded riverbank. The eroded bank was graded down, to remove the cliff effect. Additional willow was also planted behind the spilling and on the graded bank. A post and wire fence was erected along the top of the bank to prevent stock from grazing the trees and spilled willow. The area fenced is narrow, as so to avoid obstructing the line of the footpath.

The work was carried out in April 2005 and the photograph shows the bank in July. A success story all round!

We have also carried out this type of work on the River Ure, near Hawes, on a 60° bend in the river. Previously there was a 1.75m cliff, eroding back 0.5 metre annually. We have now halted this erosion, and provided a gradient that the flood water can rise over, losing some of its energy in the process.

You can see how successful the work has been from the photograph, which shows the new growth from the willow spilling, the ground vegetation that has had stock excluded, and the additional trees that we planted. This is approximately five months after the initial work

Access

Footpath works at Lunds
We have recently had great help with construction of a boardwalk, improving the surface of a public footpath.The footpath is located at Lunds in Upper Wensleydale and was always wet, boggy and difficult to cross. Volunteers from the John Muir Trust helped construct 31 metres of boardwalk, clear out a drainage ditch and improve waymarking through the forestry plantation.

John Muir Trust volunteers - thank you for your hard work!

Contact details

Matt Neale
Upper Wensleydale Area Ranger
Dales Countryside Museum
Station Yard
Hawes
North Yorkshire
DL8 3NT

01969 666220