Spring Clean 2019

The time has come round again to spruce up the Woods and we will be taking part in the local Town Council’s Spring Clean on Saturday March 23rd. Meet at the entrance to the Woods (off Keighley Road) at 10:30am and we will do a morning in Nutclough till around, say, 1pm.

As well as a clean-up, there will be a job to renew some steps where the original flight we put in the Dell area about ten years ago has started to break up…

Hope to see you on Saturday 23rd.

The dell area, overgrown this summer!

Date for Spring Clean 2018

The next work day in the Woods will be on Saturday 17th February – I will send out a reminder nearer the time with an indication of what we will be doing at the site.

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Last work day we planted some flag iris around the mill pond and also we have replaced the locking post from the metal gate near the entrance, which had gone astray. The stepping stones at the mill pond have settled and firmed up, and with the help of the CMBC Countryside work-team the sycamore trees that fell into the pond last year have been tidied up, meaning that there are plenty of logs and brash there to provide a habitat for invertebrates, mosses and lichens.

Best wishes

Gavin Roberts

for Friends of Nutclough Woods

Woods ready for Winter 2017

The Woods are now ready for the winter – we have recently planted some flag iris around the mill pond and have replaced the locking post from the metal gate near the entrance, which had gone astray. The stepping stones at the mill pond have settled and firmed up, and with the help of the CMBC Countryside work-team the sycamore trees that have recently fallen nearby have been tidied up and there are plenty of logs and brash there to provide a habitat for invertebrates, mosses and lichens.

During the summer we had some young people from the National Citizen Service (NCS) cutting back in the lower dell area (see pic below), and on a recent work party we noticed how little rubbish there is in the Woods generally.

The next activity will be in the New Year, on Saturday 17^th February meeting at the entrance nr. the former Nutclough Tavern off Keighley Road at 10:30am. Everyone is welcome to come and look after this important woodland site near the centre of Hebden Bridge.

Practical Day 20th May in Nutclough Woods

Dave Wilson, Calderdale Countryside Area Manager, will be leading a practical day in Nutclough Woods on Saturday 20th May, meeting at the Keighley Road entrance at 10:30am. The group will be working in the streams, along with other tasks, so please wear suitable clothing and footwear (wellies will be a good idea).

There is very little litter in the Woods at the moment, but there will be the issue of the invasive Himalayan balsam this summer which will need controlling – it looks like this season might be a bad one for balsam at the site. If you cannot make the work-day, but come regularly into the Woods, do feel free to pull the balsam as you walk past!

 Please contact Dave Wilson for any further information about the task on the 20th May on 07720 249 359.

Work day 23rd November 2013

Five of us were out in the crisp winter morning to carry out a number of routine tasks and planned maintenance.

The working party gathers

Chris and David shoring up the path

Gavin carrying a large log

Steven points out the toad he has unearthed

Surprised toad – was he hibernating?

Hard at work repairing the sides of the path.

The flood of July 2012

Here’s a film uploaded to Youtube showing the amazing scenes of at Nutclough Woods during the June 2012 flood of Nutclough.  The topography of the clough was dramatically altered by the tremendous flow of water.  Volunteers from the Environment Agency came soon after the floods to clear away the silt deposited in the dell area at the bottom of the woods.

Environment Agency volunteers clearing silt in the dell area

The weir and culvert were damaged.  Over a year later, the area is recovering its plant cover.  The replanting of the pond with celandines has taken very successfully, and the grass is spreading back over the activity area after the topsoil was washed away.