Morton of Pitmilly Countryside Resort, Kingsbarns - 2nd - 3rd Sept
One of the things I enjoy most about volunteering with the CSDSWA is the stunning Scottish landscapes we get to visit. Morton of Pitmilly Countryside Resort, just outside Kingsbarns St Andrews, was no exception.A new location for us in 2017, Morton of Pitmilly Countryside Resort asked us to help assess and repair a long section of wall which had collapsed at various points.After a brief inspection, the cause was clear - little to no hearting and traced stones- the most common causes of dry stone walls collapsing. This was often a result of speed over quality when originally built. By skipping on the hearting and laying stones with their length along the wall, known as 'tracing' rather than into the wall, a wall could go up much faster and would require less stone, but inevitably a wall without appropriate hearting will fail when it settles over a few seasons. Due to the short height of this wall, it probably lasted longer than most would before giving way.Our volunteers for the day were split across two sections. The main team tackled the largest gap, part way along the wall, while Malcolm got some practice rebuilding the cheek end by himself.With only a day, our time was limited, but good progress was made. Further work on this wall will need more stone on site, but with views like this we look forward to coming back next year.
