On a gorgeous wintry sunny Saturday morning, five GGers turned out for the last Ham Lands visit of 2025. Adam, James, Harrison Susannah and Alex were tasked with helping the Friends of Ham clear one of the beautiful paths in the Ham Lands, which were overgrown with brambles. Armed with choppers and other gardening equipment we set about this onerous mission, however, it is always surprising how much we get through in just a short period of time.
Once done, we were suitable looked after by Sharon and the Friends of Ham, supplied with festive mince pies, coffees and teas. If that is not an incentive for coming again, I don't know what is. Bramble On!

The rain cleared, making it a lovely evening for a riverside task! Three of us made our way down to our regular spot at the 3 Pigeons plot by Richmond Riverside, and it was especially lovely to welcome Cecilia to the task.

With our handy garden tools and a lot of “…is this a weed?”, we got stuck into the task. The dandelions were out in force, one even managed to break a trowel, but between us we managed to clear a good amount. It was great to chat and catch up as we worked our way across the 3 pigeons plot.

By the end we’d made a really good dent, leaving things much tidier and ready for the next session. We’ll be back soon to keep this little riverside corner nice and tidy.

It was a lovely way to spend an evening — fresh air, good company, and the beautiful Richmond riverside right beside us.

Maria joined the usual Elf runners Adam and Steph Ducat at Marble Hill in Richmond for volunteering but also for a fun run around the park. Honor ran with her son and he did great. Wet, damp and slippery. Course cahnged vs last year to have less mud, but we still had a slip and slide section in the woods. Well done to all the Elves. Warm up done then it was 3,2,1 and go for a fun session with loads of children running with their parents and some with their dogs.

On a wet and damp Sunday morning 5 Goodgymers made their way to Marble Hill Park in Richmond. Setup for Mind RIchmond for another Festive Fun Run 5km. Putting up gazebos, tables, chairs and signs up. How many Goodgymers does it take to put signs up with cellotape? 5 of course: 1 supervisor, 1 sign holder, 1 cellotape master, 1 scissor crafter and 1 quality controller . All was up in no time and ready for the choir to sing songs, followed by a Go Mental warmup before a race at 11am which 4 goodgymers ran. Then it was time to put down and pack everything in the rain.