Time to build a railway...but where?

[Peter Butler]

I'm in good company on your customer gallery Colin, thanks for including me.

[Porterhousemodels]

I'm in good company on your customer gallery Colin, thanks for including me.

No worries Peter glad you are happy with the models. Thankyou for sharing the pictures.

[Peter Butler]

During the off-season (UK winter) break, while the BURPS is dormant and all of the staff in hibernation, the Lord of the Manor is away in his country residence, blissfully unaware of the devastation which has occurred to his garden adjacent to his residence here in the village. At first glance it looks like a sink-hole, but there is a spread of soil and plant material alongside it. Who or what is responsible I wonder?
In the past we have experienced small burrows, but this is serious! I have to make urgent contact with our ground-care contractors before Lord Butler returns.

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[philipy]

That looks nasty Peter.
I think I may have something similar (actually it's still going on). I built a stone walled, 18" high raised bed, with a concrete trackbase running through it and infilled either side with 'soil'. Unfortunately the soil was actually from where an old compost heap had been and I think even after about 6 or 7 years it still appears to be subsiding, because I presume that the proportion of vegetable matter in the soil was so high that it is still rotting down and slowly compacting. Fortunately I put drainage in the bottom of the raised bed when I built, so it doesn't fill with standing water as yours has done.

[Peter Butler]

Philip, the standing water covers the bottom of the pit and disguises the weed control fabric which I laid down first. It is that which stopped the demon digger from penetrating even further underground. But for that I think it may well be far deeper than it is now.
I'm confident it isn't caused by my dog, although she has investigated it there has been no attempt to add to the destruction.

[Phil.P]

From my experience, I think you have been visited by a badger..

Phil.P

[Peter Butler]

Phil, I think badgers are beautiful creatures and, even if responsible, are still welcome here, but my cattle farming neighbours would be less enthusiastic. It is rare to see badgers, even roadkill specimens, so possibly they are not common in the area.
Why one should choose to dig there when surrounded by acres of open space remains a mystery?

[ge_rik]

Squirrels? They do enjoy digging for buried acorns etc.

Rik

[jimmytrains_01]

i'm sorry to say this but maybe he / she drives a Pink roller and has a friend called Kevin, and it definately not Fab1.
I had a sunbathing version who ate my pond liner, so we drained the pond. I have met the one in the roller sat outside the newsagents at the bottom of the road on a break.

[Peter Butler]

Squirrels? They do enjoy digging for buried acorns etc.

Rik

Squirrels!!!!! What size are the squirrels in Cheshire? If I saw a squirrel capable of that level of destruction I would reach for my gun immediately!
I'm visualising a squirrel, high on fermented acorn alcohol, sitting in a miniature JCB, laughing at the thought of restoring nature to the garden, and letting us know his application for membership to the Forum was rejected.

[SimonWood]

I think badgers are the most likely culprits. They are quite active in my garden, and seem to dig at things without rhyme nor reason. I certainly avoid giving them reason - such as using the live yoghurt method for encouraging moss - especially as they are capable of quite impressive feats of destruction. If it was badgers, it's a testament to the quality of you foundations and walls that they are all still standing! Another possibility would be rabbits, though I cannot imagine why a rabbit would have chosen to dig there, so that seems a bit unlikely to me.

[FWLR]

Thats a real mess Peter. I would be devastated seeing that. It's a good job your building had been taken in for winter maintenance or who know's what else would have been destroyed.

Whatever did that destruction will need to be kept away and hope it doesn't get to do more damage. Do you have any of those outdoor cameras that record whenever there is any movement in the camera's field of view

[Trevor Thompson]

This is part of the problem of living in the country!

I also think a badger is the probable culprit - although it is possibly a fox.

We have a badger set opposite our house - but thankfully they have confined themselves to overturning the rubbish bins - so far!

We often see both badgers and foxes ambling down our lane at night.

Of course there are loads of advantages to living in the countryside - and a few disadvantages.

Trevor

[Peter Butler]

This is a slight annoyance but easily restored when the weather improves. As long as Lord Butler doesn't get to hear about it all will be well.
It would take much, much more than this to ever make me regret moving to the country. I have thought about the different animal suggestions and am drawn to the fox as the culprit. We do have foxes (I've seen them) and many rabbits, some of which have burrowed into the railway previously, so that would attract foxes. I do like the idea of badgers living in the area, but I have doubts that weed control fabric would be sufficient to stop their claws from ripping straight through it.
As Simon has mentioned, the main structural work remains intact, so it is just a tidy-up job.

[ge_rik]

Squirrels? They do enjoy digging for buried acorns etc.

Rik

Squirrels!!!!! What size are the squirrels in Cheshire? If I saw a squirrel capable of that level of destruction I would reach for my gun immediately!
I'm visualising a squirrel, high on fermented acorn alcohol, sitting in a miniature JCB, laughing at the thought of restoring nature to the garden, and letting us know his application for membership to the Forum was rejected.

Difficult to get a sense of scale from the photos.

Rik

[Phil.P]

'We' (well, where we are now) had a large hole dug by badgers, in the corner of the garden..
About 3'6" long, 18" wide, and 2' deep.

It had been the site of a compost heap, was probably easy digging, and full of juicy, wriggly things..
Dad found it, when the trestle holding the scaffold plank he was standing on to cut the top of the hedge, disappeared from under him.

It was infilled, and covered with two old steel shelves, which are still there.

Phil.P

[Peter Butler]

This is the wonderful 'Spooner's Boat' model from Porterhouse Models, which I showed on Dec. 26th 2022. It was originally intended for use on the Ffestiniog Railway and ran downhill by gravity. It then operated across the Cobb with the aid of a sail, fitted at Boston Lodge, to complete the journey into Porthmadog. This model is motorised, although an un-motorised option is also available ....
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Here it is today, this time complete with driver figure (from David Clavey) and sail, which now makes it possible to use on my level track and still look correct as I don't have inclines on my line....
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[ge_rik]

That does look good, Peter. Of course, you could always add RC to the sail's mainsheet so you can have it properly wind powered and tack into the wind.

Rik

[Peter Butler]

That does look good, Peter. Of course, you could always add RC to the sail's mainsheet so you can have it properly wind powered and tack into the wind.

Rik

Why stop there Rik? With just a little careful planning I might be able to install a sound system with whistling wjnds, flapping sails and cries of 'Thar she blows' !!!

[ge_rik]

That does look good, Peter. Of course, you could always add RC to the sail's mainsheet so you can have it properly wind powered and tack into the wind.

Rik

Why stop there Rik? With just a little careful planning I might be able to install a sound system with whistling wjnds, flapping sails and cries of 'Thar she blows' !!!

Now you're talking .......

Rik