Projects

On-going projects

1.    Work to restore the ancient hay meadows and increase the number of wild flowers.

2.    Management of the 100 year old lake and its surroundings.

3.    Care of the woodland and planting new trees and shrubs.

Dredging and Repairing the Lake

From their inception as a society the Friends recognized that repairing and dredging the lake was a priority. An earlier attempt to carry this out failed through lack of funding. The possibility of obtaining the necessary money through a Heritage Lottery grant changed the situation and members of the FOSPNR Committee became heavily involved in preparing a bid. Further considerable work was required after their application succeeded in order to meet the conditions of the grant, obtain tenders and select a contractor.

In the meantime Friends, Council staff and BTC Volunteers began readying the lake for its make-over, attacking the masses of bramble that overran the main approaches to it and removing willows that had grown far into the lake, concealing its edges in many places.

In the Spring of 2008, trees were felled and more undergrowth cleared to prepare the ground for dredging in the autumn.

(All pictures by John Morris)

September '08

The following photos are a selection from those taken by John Morris to provide a record of the dredging and clearing work carried out by Kingcombe Aquacare in the autumn of 2008. They were taken between the 16th and the 29th of September.

The photos show the kinds of machinery used, the conditions worked in and the careful disposal of the material dredged. They also show the stonework emerging around the perimeter of the lake and the little island.

These following images focus on the balletic activity of the diggers.

The following section shows some of the dredged material accumulating in the prepared holding sites. At the same time the island and its stonework become more clearly defined, while the remains of an unexpected boundary wall appear below it.

Various objects retrieved from the lake bed are also pictured.

November/December '08

The contractors and their equipment left and the lake slowly began to fill. In the meanwhile Friends of the Reserve continued to be actively involved in work around the Lake - and its contemplation .

By mid-December the lake was full to overflowing, which made it difficult for those attempting to determine whether previously identified leaks had been satisfactorily dealt with.

Heritage Lottery Funding

Our successful bid to obtain help from the Heritage Lottery Fund meant that this all-important work could be carried out in 2008. The lake restoration project involved felling some of the trees, removing silt from the lake and repairing the dam.