On a sunny Spring evening, 14 GoodGym runners ran along the canal to do some gardening tasks at Alice Park Community Garden. We got loads done and really made a difference to the community space. We all enjoyed being outdoors surrounded by nature and we can't wait to go back again later in the summer. We got some great exercise by running an awesome 7km and doing some extra training along the way!

We met at our usual sport outside the leisure centre and I shared the news with the group. We had a really successful Community Mission at the weekend where three of our runners helped out the National Trust volunteers on the Bath Skyline walk. It sounded like a very tiring but a very rewarding task! We have some Group Runs later in the summer where we are going to be helping develop the Skyline walk so make sure you don't miss out! We have the monthly pub quiz on Thursday (tomorrow) and two really exciting Community Missions coming up at the weekend (details below).

Along the canal path to the park!

After a warm-up we took the scenic route along the canal path and made it to Alice Park in good time. Our host, Kathy, met us and introduced the project to those hadn't been there. For the last 10 years the garden has been growing a variety of different fruit and vegetables. It is a community project that is run by volunteers and anyone is welcome to come and help out in the garden and enjoy the produce.

Gardening and volunteering is a fantastic way to look after mental health and wellbeing ... and you get to help your community at the same time!

They are looking for volunteers to help out in the garden, so if you are interested or know someone who is interested then see the picture included in the run report for more information.

Kathy had a whole range of jobs for us to do which she had kindly written up on a whiteboard for us. With only 50 minutes before we had to leave, we had our work cut out for us, but we relish a challenge and were excited to get going!

If you have a better gardening pun then lettuce know!

Tom and Rob spent a large chunk of their time emptying the compost bins into a newly prepared bed. On previous tasks we have worked on this compost by 'turning' it and sieving out lumps, so it was great to finally put it to use! The runners created mounds of compost and planted some new butternut squash plants ready to grow.

The weather has been warm and dry recently, and to make sure the plantlife in the garden stays healthy it needs watering regularly. Chris D and Ali spent their evening running up and down the garden watering all of the flower beds. This was a classic example of combining exercise and volunteering!

We'ed always wanted to do some weeding!

Mary and Ed hacked away at some pesky weeds that were invading part of the garden. There was lots of sticky bind weed that needed removing as it was starting to suffocate some of the plants in the garden. This was a job benefited from some GoodGym enthusiasm!

Singing an untamed melody

At the back of the garden, Una, Kathryn and Max were weeding the patch around a plum tree. They had to make sure not to pull up a young Rose bush that was growing nearby! By removing the weeds around the base of the tree they have cleared the way for other volunteers to easily work around this area and also made the area a lot tidier. Great team work!

We are so sage and wise!

Never one to shy away from a challenge, Chris L donned some gauntlets and pulled out some nettles. They had made their home among the Sage and they needed to go! There was a huge pile of them at the end ready to go into the compost area. Nice work Chris!

Into the strawberry patch we go!

Steph and Dora weeded the beds of Strawberry plants. We could see lots of young strawberries on the end of the plants that look like they will grow into tasty berries to be picked later in the year. The bed was so much cleaner after the efforts of the runners here.

We did lops and lops of gardening!

Always ready for controlled destruction, Emily used her loppers to cut down lots of branches. There was a big pile of wood that needed to be trimmed down so it could be fit into a big bag and be stored for later use.

Thanks

Thanks to Steph for backmarking for us this week and for making sure no one got left behind! Thanks, again, to Steph for the Beatles (surely Beetles!?) pun. Thanks to Kathy and her team for hosting us last night. We had a lot of fun and look forward to coming back soon!

Upcoming events:

• On Thursday (tomorrow!) we are heading to the monthly pub quiz at St James Wine Vaults.
• On Saturday we are gardening at Dry Arch Growers
• On Sunday we are helping out at a Scout Service Day at a campsite in Bath
• On Saturday 8th June there is a Community Mission to paint the children's section at Moorland Road Library
• On Saturday 8th June there is also a chance to help out at the Saltford Summer Festival
• Next week we are gardening at Smallcombe Nuttery

Three runners ran 10k to assist the National Trust team of volunteers maintain the beautiful skyline walk around Bath. We started by digging out holes for poles, which involved digging out a lot of limestone and using strange implements we had never seen before. Then we moved onto shovelling hard core into wheel barrows and tipping and raking this onto the foundation of a pole barn they are building. This was a lovely setting and worth a visit if you are every around this way.

A group of runners ran along the river Avon to St John's Court to paint some outdoor furniture. We painted 10 chairs, a bench, a table and also varnished a bench ... all in one evening! It was a lovely sunny evening and we enjoyed being outside helping our community.

After meeting at our usual spot outside the leisure centre we were on our way. This is one of our shortest runs at just over 1km away, so we got there with lots of time for volunteering.

The task

We met our hosts for the evening and they gave us an overview of the building complex and the task. St John's Court is a shared living space in the centre of Bath. There are lots of different groups of people who live there, including vulnerable adults and people who have mobility challenges.

The Committee and the Resident's Association make a great effort to build and maintain a community and one of the ways they do this is by maintaining a welcoming outdoor space for all to enjoy.

There are several areas where residents and their guests can sit outside and enjoy being together, and these spaces need regular maintenance. We came last year to paint some furniture that lives outside on their decking, and we were back again for more painting!

Last night, we moved furniture from storage cupboards to the back of the complex overlooking the riverside. The team had already kindly jet-washed the furniture for us and we were ready to get going!

We got off to a rough start ... I should sand down from my position, as these puns are awful!!

The first step was to sand down some of the rough edges of the wood. This roughness can come from where things like moss has grown on the surface over the years.

Don't paint on my parade!

After the sanding we mixed some paint and let our artistic talents shine!

We wern-table to leave without finishing!

We worked in teams to make sure we covered as much of the surface of the chairs as possible. The chairs were painted a smooth cream colour and the table was painted in a calming eggshell blue. The colour we added makes the furniture look so much fresher and really brightens up the garden area. Also, the paint will help to weather-proof the wood which is important as it exposed to the elements by the river path.

I should also benchun how much fun we had!

A group of our runners used their skills to varnish a bench. The bench needed freshening up and our work here makes the bench look as good as new. This will help keep the bench protected and help extend its lifetime.

We finished the task paint-splattered and worn out from all the kneeling and bending but we were really proud with our work. Our hosts were extremely happy with what we had achieved in just over an hour and were extremely grateful. We are heading back to St John's Court to do some more painting later in the summer so sign up now to reserve the spot in you diary!

Thanks!

Thanks to Emma for backmakring for us and for also the pun last night!

Upcoming runs:

• On Sunday 26th May we are volunteering with The National Trust to help on the Bath Skyline Walk
• At the end of May we are heading to St James Wine Vaults for the monthly quiz
• On 1st June we are helping out at Dry Arch Growers
• In June we are also helping at the Saltford Festival
• Next week: we are cleaning tennis courts at Alice Park