Today we welcomed members of the ASB FCO Data & Reporting team to CUE Haven for their volunteer day.  The team included Aritra, Deepan, Eleonor, Jack, Kirstin, Mario, Nicky, Prasadani and Stasha.

Everyone was new to CUE Haven so after spending some time getting acquainted over morning tea, Mahrukh gave a talk about the history and objectives of the CUE Haven restoration project and plans for the future.  Thomas then gave a safety briefing and described the work planned for the day.

The plan for the day was to continue with maintenance on the walking tracks.  This involved trimming vegetation that had grown over the tracks during the summer as well as some general cleanup and fix up work.

The group broke into two smaller teams and worked on different parts of the tracks. 

We headed out to the work site and went to work.

We aren’t building any new tracks, but the existing track network needs regular maintenance due to wear and tear and ground movement and one team worked on a variety of walking track repair and maintenance tasks.

The team moved up a long section of track identifying and fixing different issues.  They spent time studying the issues and coming up with solutions.

The main issue they found was that in some places, side boards had moved out of alignment or loosened and they nailed everything back in position.  In some cases, it was necessary to dig out the old section to realign the boards.

The team found and repaired a number of track alignment issues.

In one area, side boards had not been installed along a section of track.  The team planned the track route and position using a string line.

Once they were happy with the track alignment, they measured the section to determine the length of timber needed for the side boards.

They then went down to the shed and cut the needed timber and brought it up to the site.

The next step was digging out a channel for the boards to sit in.

Once the channel was prepared, they installed the board, using pegs to secure it.

They repositioned the step riser in order to be able to securely nail the board to the riser to keep everything straight.

And installed the second section of side board.

They reinstalled the step riser and nailed everything in place.

The last step was to back fill the step area to make the ground level on both sides.

The team accomplished a lot and made some significant improvements to the track.  Future teams will build on their work to finish off the side boards.

The other team today worked on clearing vegetation from the wetlands boardwalk and also clearing up some other track sections and trimming overhanging vegetation. 

They started on the boardwalk.

When they finished the boardwalk, they moved on to the walking track.

They finished up by moving on to one of the side roads, clearing the surface and trimming vegetation.

Thanks to the teams’ efforts, the tracks are looking better than ever.

At lunchtime both teams met up and walked back for a well-deserved lunch.

The group today accomplished an amazing amount of work and tackled some unusual challenges.  Everyone showed a lot of teamwork, energy and creativity in coming up with solutions.

Our many thanks to Stasha for organising the day.

And a huge THANK YOU to the entire team.  We so appreciate your hard work and help. You have all made a wonderful contribution to CUE Haven and all your efforts are greatly appreciated.

We look forward to having you back out with your family and friends for a leisurely visit to explore your community reserve–CUE Haven, and also returning next year for another fun and productive volunteer day.

Thank You!! Thank You!!