25 Amazing GoodGyming GoodGymers ran an amazing 8k to Clissold Park to shovel, shift and rake our way to path creating glory! Then celebrated Amanda’s 50th GoodDeed with pizza and an amazing cake & cookies!

Our longest run in years!!! Great to get some serious distance under our feet this evening with an adventure up to the Corner of the borough as we helped Hackney Parks lay some wood chip pathway around the perimeter of the park to allow year around usage even in the wettest of weathers!

With time of the essence we got away fast from the Bakehouse and made steady running progress up to Stoke Newington to meet at Clissold park. With 4k under our belts we got straight to work gathering tools and shifting the mulch from the big pile to barrows and onto the in much need very muddy pathway! The production line was swift and the efficiency super high! With less time to play with than normal due to our longer running we did an amazing job of getting so much done and creating with so Side ways thinking chip raking strategy over 100 metres of pathway!!

With an awesome effort on the wood chips we zipped back to base to celebrate Amanda’s 50th GoodDeed in typical Hackney GG style with Pizza and the most amazing cake and personalised cookies maybe ever!!

Great night, see you next week for a visit to Dalston!!

Joel

30 Awesome GoodGymers ran 4k to London Fields to build and create a dead head fence for Hackney parks then 18 of the crew celebrated a few GG anniversaries at the February social!

With the combination of storms Ciara and Dennis causing us a change of plan from Abney to London Fields. We still had a bumper turnout of 30 GGers.

Welcoming in our new runners and heading out on a couple of local loops to to get the body warm for the task ahead. With feeling coming into your fingers and toes we rounded the corner with 4k of running under the belt. We grabbed the tools and headed off into the park to load up on twigs and branches to make and repair the dead head fence through the woodland trail.

Barrows, rakes, barrows at the ready we searched the parks and loaded ourselves up with the masses of fallen mini branches and twigs which got the wrath of Ciara’s path!!

Working hard so that we stayed warm we got so much done in 50 minutes of epic action before the time and cold hit and with a huge regeneration to the parks dead hedge complete!!

We dashed back grabbed our stuff and headed for well earned Pizza with an 18 strong crew.

Thank you all for coming along!! Big shout out to Pamela for the pun, Chi and Liz fir the extra pictures and Toyin for arranging the pizza extravaganza!!

Have a great week

Joel

A crack team of GG'ers (some coming straight from Finsbury Parkrun) assembled in Clissold Park to join lots of other volunteers to plant more trees with our friends from the Tree Musketeers.

After Russels intro about all things trees the positions for the trees were marked out and people set to work. Unless anybody got scientific evidence to the contrary, Russels theory on square holes over round ones holds up - so a square hole was dug, through grass & soil & rubble. Sophia turned out quite eager to smash up some rubble with a metal breaker bar especially brought down for that reason.

With a few tips from the TM team in between, the now 'Poppy' christened black poplar soon had a comfortable spot, a protective cage raised to help it withstand weather and wildlife. Note: i had no involvement with the pole going into the ground!

After two last trees were dealt with as well, all tools were (hopefully) safely tucked away to ride out storm Ciara tomorrow before being returned to the nursery.

Total tally of trees planted across 6 Hackney parks since November now stands at 104 (all grown in the nursery)- Goodgym has lend a helping hand with quite a few of those! Keep an eye out for more tree fun with the Musketeers, there is bound to be some more planting happening soon, if not there is always something to do at the Nursery on the Marshes.