Jane and I both made it to one of the local ‘green gym’ sessions today. The task was repairing dry stone walls at the boundaries of Loughborough’s Outwoods area.

For the kind of wall we were working on, there were several things to bear in mind: put the length of the stones across the wall, keep the base wider than the top, aim for a flat surface and a good flat face to reject water from getting inside, use smaller stones to lock the bigger ones into place.

It is hard labour, both physically and mentally, as you try to solve a complex 3D problem while hefting heavy pieces of stone. However, it is also satisfying. Hopefully, if we return in a few months, we won’t easily be able to see the start and end of the bit we worked on (and the whole thing will still be standing!).