Upfill alongside north embankment! 5th September 2021

You gotta admire the restoration process for continuing to throw up surprises.

I thought the Finch pond infill was largely complete, with the land largely at finish height. All that needed be done was a little bit of tinkering: bits of minor landscaping, perhaps digging out the odd pond , establishing stream courses, capping with top soil from the embankments, putting in fencing and trees, perhaps the car park. Sort of like fitting out the insides of a new build house, once it was weather sealed.

Oh no. Inert have continued their major upfill (as I call it) exercise. This week working alongside the north embankment (west).

I'm prepared to accept there would have been a small amount of settlement of the area after the initial infill, but surely not 45cm-60cm. This is the amount the area is being raised by, and this is without the capping of top soil from both the flattening of the embankments and whatever else is brought in.

I don't know. As a scientific/engineering type, I tend to start at one end and work my way to the other, with the odd bit of tarting up once the basic framework is completed. This restoration has Inert flitting all over the site,  seemingly doing odd bits of 'non-work'. But then again, what do I know about restoring an ex-quarry.

Oh, lorries are having to reverse some 50m-75m again to drop their loads. This time as the upfill is a wide-ish strip along side the north embankment. Odd that, seeing as the going on what was Finch pond is now firm, and previously lorries would happily drive around the perimeter of this area.  Reversing slows the operation down, with many lorries waiting their turn.

I'm very curious how the area will finally look, as it bears a passing resemblance to plans I have seen.

Wildlife have taken to the new, deeper Cormorant lake (north) and the possible new Finch pond.  Only as Cormorant lake (south) has largely disappear, and what is left is well below ground level - thus making predator spotting a tad difficult.

Sorry about the photos. It was very, very overcast when I got to the site at 7:00am this morning.