Jan

If you go down to the Clough today…

… you’re sure to see some photographers!

Tinkers Clough is a small wooded valley which lies between Clough Bank and the Macclesfield Canal in the centre of Bollington. Due to the hard work of a small group of enthusiastic volunteers Tinkers Clough is now a much more attractive place to walk through.

Pathways and boardwalks were first established in the Clough in the 1980’s by Macclesfield Groundwork Trust. Over the years the woodwork collapsed and rotted away. Bollington Initiative Trust members have been working with the landowner for the last three years to improve the footpath, tidy up the woodland and secure the boundary walls.

The next phase will include thinning of the tree canopy and the introduction of bird and bat boxes. It is hoped this work will take place in the spring.

The careful management of the wetlands alongside the river will allow a variety of plant species to grow in the spring. The removal of the dense cover allows light in to the valley will encourage growth.

A group of up to 20 volunteers have been recruited to manage the Clough on a regular basis.

The project has been achieved through successful partnership between Bollington Initiative Trust, Bollington Town Council and Cheshire East Council and now it is time for Bollington Festival Photography to get involved.

We have been invited to take images in Tinkers Clough, specifically to record

the four seasons
nature – flora and fauna
the use of Tinkers Clough by the public
events

Please put any images that you take onto Flickr and at least tag them “Tinkers Clough”, Bollington and the month that you take them. A written description of anything unusual would really help too.

Our group has been promised a substantial grant to cover the cost of producing some photo books containing our images. It is our first official “paid” contract so not only is it an exciting prospect, but we are being tested!

So far, the events coming up are a public opening day heralding many activities, with local junior schools and bat, bird, flora, fauna people. (A fuller description is in “Bollington Live” edition number 48.) And on Saturday March 13^th the wood is on the list of targeted community spaces to be groomed by the next Bollington Town Hall “ClearUp.” It will start at 10.00am. At that time there will be an opportunity to register as a Friend of Tinkers Clough, a group dedicated to protect and sustain our recent improvements.

The Photography Group will be discussing this project at our next meeting on 28^th January, but we need to start taking photographs now. I am in the middle of organising some expert-led Nature Rambles to help us to “focus” on the task. When there are details, I will publish these through our Group email. If you want to be added to this list, please click here.