Autumn is here and much our hay meadow has been cut and bailed.
Most of the hay is collected mechanically leaving just a few areas to be raked by hand.
Enter our intrepid Youth Rangers a small group of environmentally aware young people with bundles of energy, huge amounts of determination and a little bit of free time too.
Yesterday they were all set to get stuck into, what could be seen by many as a slightly mundane task, there were geared up and ready to give their all, it was time for,
'The Great British Rake Off'.
Among the challenges were, who could rake the fastest, fill a tonne bag to the top, and the ever popular bag drag...
The hay cut from the meadow is full of thistle and teasel, which gives an abundant food source for birds such as goldfinch over the summer, but is just too course for our sheep. So the hay bailed from our meadow is fed to our grazing cattle instead who are more than happy to make short work of it over the Winter.
By the end of the day, despite their seemingly boundless energy at the start, some of our Youth Rangers just couldn't take anymore and needed a rest. :-)