No trespassing - I own firearms and a backhoe!

 It was the Rocks by Rail Museum Members Day yesterday so for an unfortunate Mrs. Woody it was time to venture out from the interior comfort of the comfy and warm sofa to the rather dismal day outside! However, it was an opportunity to show her the gabion baskets/cages that I had been talking about for the last few weeks and we were accompanied by some of the fitter and younger members - Alex, Thomas, Dan and George.

 

I have to admit that walking up to it a few days after having filled the first of the second layer of gabions it does look impressive!

I also had the opportunity to meet loyal blog readers Mrs. B, Gary and Alex who all are much valued by the WMD team - which is actually me!

Also on display was a rather nice 0 gauge model of Brittania. This was a retirement gift to Andy from none other than Jools Holland, he of musical fame. Andy has run a sound company for more years then he cares to recall although he can recall many fascinating stories of famous people which adds to the interest at lunchtime if he is at the Museum! During the last decade or so he has been working with Jools Holland and doing all his sound for his tours and TV shows including the Hogmanay show last New Years Eve. 

A beautiful gift and no doubt one that will be treasured by Andy sp much so that he refused my offer to take it away and run it in for a year or two!

Talking of the New Year I did take Mrs. W on her annual pilgrimage to the Newark Toy and Train Fair. She is not sure why she goes but I do facilitate the whole thing strictly for her benefit - at least that is what I have told her!

This years event was as busy as last year despite the storm over night. A lot of nostalgia on display which these photos may awaken memories from some older UK based readers. It is a big fair with a lot of stalls.

I was really tempted by this sign but having no firearms or backhoe made it a somewhat empty threat to any trespassers on the WMD estate!

A reminder of the 1990's with Churchill the dog from the TV advert for Churchill car insurance - Oh yes!

If you wanted a Mamod or similar steam engine, there were plenty there. Just don't expect to get the fuel pellets that are now illegal to own!

This is one of those, how did that never get made moments when you see something like this from the 1970's

And again, how did this Mecano set survive so well?

Lots of interesting things but Mrs. W bought some cookies and I bought this!

There is a reason for this and to some degree what is to the side of it may give some clue but in the meantime it is set aside!

Not a bad start to the New Year!

Well it is only the second day into 2025 yet two of us were foolish hardy enough to go into the Rocks By Rail Museum today. It is a strange place with just two of you there and not the place I would wish to spend a Winters night! However it was a bright day although the ice never really melted making moving around a bit of a hazard.

Yes, it was another day of Gabion basket/cages work which meant we needed more hardcore to fill them. Given that we had mined out the supply available on the loading dock we had to move to new sites of supply such as at the back of the exhibition centre. 

Given the icy conditions at the ramped end of the platform, we moved the platelayers trolley to the far end where we could throw the hardcore from onto the trolley. Working smarter not harder as I get older!

The only trouble with this is that you have to reverse the trolley out of the platform road, change the point and then push back up hill and through the catch pint which are all hazardous when you are walking over them and unable to see where they are because of the trolley in front of you!

However we got two full trolleys of hardcore and managed to fill one of the second level baskets/cages.

It was not the easiest fills to do as being ta just over 2m high everything had to be lifted up.

That was the first trolley of hardcore and David seems pleased with it!

With the second trolley load David went to the back of the baskets/cages and I had the arm stretching job of handing him each individual piece of hardcore!

However we soon got to the point of the gabion being full!

David walks away a happy man - I think!

We did move a lot of hardcore as these after pictures show when compared to the pictures at the start of this post. Not a bad start to the new year!

Relaxed!

Another day at the Rocks by Rail Museum where out of season without guests things can be a little more relaxed. 

No one about in the workshops so where are they? Well I should have known -in the snap cabin with tea on the go and relaxing!

Even once out of the snap cabin it was one of those days when relaxing was the order of the day and I cannot blame anyone for that! The Museum is also about friendships and camaraderie.

 

Much as I also had a relaxing day I did get some work done. In the absence of anyone else involved in the gabion baskets/cages project I just used my time to source more rock/hardcore to fill the next set of baskets that are due to be delivered shortly. 

Having quarried out the source of dried out cement bags to the side of the plant shed it was time to discover new sources.

Now there is a way up the side of the plant shed....

Which leads to the back...

Where in all that undergrowth there is a veritable treasure trove of hardcore ready to be quarried!

 

I got about 10 wheel barrow loads out of there so there is plenty of infill material ready to go once the gabions arrive and the rest of the team are about, obviously relaxed from not being here whilst I am about! I was certainly relaxed as I left after another great day at the Museum!

The yoyo trolley!

It may have been a damp, misty and grey day at the Rocks By Rail Museum yesterday but that did not dampen the enthusiasm to get things done!

For me that involved yet more rock bashing to create more fill for the gabion baskets/cages which was made a lot easier by the fact that metal container that had stood near to the middle of the picture below had disappeared. Not sure where it went but no doubt that will be discovered another time!

It was back to piling some of the finer material quarried from the rock pile onto the platelayers trolley and then wheeling it up to site where this finer material was used to top off the gabions.

There is probably about 5 to 6 tons of stone there! That trolley has come in very handy but it must feel like a yoyo going back and forth!

With the gabions completely full it was time to backfill behind them. Luckily, there was a source of material just down the line so the trolley was wheeled down and excavation began!

Then, like a yoyo, it was back up the line to unload the trolley! 

Just about there as Alex and Gary rest after a hard days work! They probably need to rest as the next job is the set of gabions to go on top of these! 

Meanwhile, The darkness looking into the plant shed reveals that the roof is finally finished with the ridges now all in place. 

Just a few bits on the front and that project will be done. It may not look pretty but it does the job!

Man on a mission!

This is a man on a mission! 

In the continued quest to complete the plant shed roof the last remaining major part is to fit the ridges to seal the centre of the roof. As I wrote last week the preformed ridges are angled too sharply so they need to be made shallower. The man on a mission is Andy who innovatively uses a large metal gas bottle to roll down the pre-formed ridge to flatten it!

This level of innovativeness is viewed with some amazement by some including Richard and Riley!

However it works and two thirds of the roof is now complete. Harriot the JCB will be pleased especially as she is also due to get a new alternator to cure her ever flat battery problem!

Meanwhile I continue my quarrying quest for more rock to fill the gabion baskets/cages that are part of a new viewing platform that is being built. The easy stuff has gone so I am having to dig down and under things to find more of the hardened cement bags to break up.

This is about a ton of material on the platelayers trolley.

I was joined by Alex and we pushed the loaded trolley up the line to the site where the third and last of the first level baskets/cages needed filling.

That ton or so of rocks took the level up to about two thirds so another load was needed.

After lunch and a rest another trolley load of material was quarried, loaded, pushed up the line and then deposited into the awaiting basket/cage bringing it to just about full! Alex poses inn celebration of the fact!

So there it is. The first layer is done - just about. A little bit of fine material is needed to top off all three baskets/cages and then the area behind them needs backfilling and then we can move onto level two with more gabion baskets/cages to fill! Given that they will be three feet higher it will be more difficult to fill them. That will see yet another man on a mission! A mission to try to make it easier to fill them!