The blocked twitten, and bicycles

Storm Ciaran visited the South Coast in early November and brought down several branches in Three Cornered Copse, but also pulled down a wall next to the Woodland Drive twitten, rendering it unsafe to use.

After a few days of folks tiptoeing through the debris the council decided to close the passageway completely in case the remaining portion of wall collapsed while users were passing through. At the time of writing, the twitten has been closed for two and a half months, and we're informed that the adjacent owners are working with their insurers to get the teetering wall repaired. In the meantime this busy thoroughfare between Woodland Drive and Woodland Avenue is not passable, and a well-used entrance to Three Cornered Copse is closed. Our councillors are regularly chasing the progress, but currently, it remains blocked, much to the frustration of the Goldstone Valley residents.

The final work day of 2023 at the end of November was well attended, thanks to all nine volunteers who came along. We cleared a few paths after the storm damage, and began to tidy up the saplings that had been planted in early 2023. Some of them had been lost to the spring drought or damage from passing traffic, but reassuringly, many were thriving. The biodegradable sheaths that protect the young shrubs are beginning to break up, and look unsightly. We are seeking advice on how long to leave them in place; it would take up to five years for the sheaths to degrade naturally. And there are a great many of them.

There was a great deal of litter collected on the work day, and the commemorative copper beech trees were rescued from brambles, clearing a way for the snowdrops that surround them to surface and flower. We were helped by a new ranger, Marie, who provided tools and support for the group; our thanks to her for making the day possible, and for providing some biscuits!

For some reason two bicycles have been left in the densest bushes of the woodland. One appeared before Christmas, the other only a few weeks ago. Neither are full size adult bikes, one is green, one red, but both are in fairly decent condition (pictures on our Facebook page). If anyone is missing these, please email info@threecorneredcopse.org.uk .

Simon Baxendale