Dry Stone Walling

Roctober Canada 6

normanhaddow@hotmail.co.uk (Norman) — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 19:35:00 +0000

One of the wallers involved with the construction of the Cabanne at the Thanksgiving Festival was John Scott. He also won a prize for the best dry stone wall built by professionals. I asked him to send me photos for the blog along with some details about the work

Here is a copy of the main section of his very interesting email.

"As promised, here are some photos of the wall built in Burritt's Rapids which is about a half hour south of Ottawa, Ontario. Burritt's (1790) is the site of one of the first mills on the Rideau River which became the Rideau Canal...a strategic military shortcut between Kingston and Ottawa at a time (1833) when the USA was a threat. The Canal was built by Colonel John By who had the wisdom to import stonemasons from Scotland to quarry, cut and lay some very fine stonework in absolute wilderness, and trick a very diverse river to flow two ways. During this time the river saw much settlement...first as small clusters of farms, then mills then busy towns and military settlements. This stone house was built round 1834 on a high bank of sandy clay not far from Clowes, one of the first limestone quarries in the area but now long grown over. The original documents are lost, but it is reasonable to assume that scotish canal stonemasons built this and many of the many other houses in the area. The home owners asked me to build a wall to block out the busy road (and related tire noise) but not to block the beautiful meadow on the other side....they didn't want an imposing structure. We estimated the height of the wall by sighting through the owners eye to just cut out the road, plus two inches. There was an existing hedge which had grown very tall and wild. They had violently torn it out so we had to remove loose soil to 12 inches and replace with aggregate. Since we had to move so much soil anyway, we decided to alter some landscape to convince spring runoff around the wall and into a ravine. We also decided to create a simple pathway to the front door. The stone used is a dolomitic limestone and reasonably hard, featuring the odd trilobite fossil and calicte cluster, and ranges from a blue/grey to brown, in beds from 1" to 12". There was also a nice stash of granite glacial boulders that had been salvaged from a barn that burned before 1970. At that time the boulders had been pushed into a pile and left to gather moss. The wall is 160 feet long and split by a driveway and gate. Although the elevation slopes by 2', the copings are level....the difference was made up by using the gigantic footing stones at the tall end so that the copes could be uniform. The wall is battered, including all cheekends, except the gated ends which are plumb. The gate is cedar and reflects the shape of the arch above the main door of the house, and we used similar shaped stone to cap the cheekends. The hardware was made by a blacksmith who works for Parks Canada at Jones Falls...a historic site that marks the watershed of the canal and features an impressive sandstone dam. The hinge pintels connect to a 24" flat arm that hooks downwards into a slot shisel cut into the walling stone. A wreglet chisel cut into the above stone keeps the arm from moving sideways. The latch bolt slides into a femal receptor which also reaches and hooks into the walling stone. These inventions were created at a Tim Hortons in classic Canadian style! I did not build this wall alone. Jason Macrae was granted a month's leave to work with me and proved to be a solid waller. Mike Bonk also helped as the winter made an early appearance. These two gentlemen receive high praise! The owners, Ian and Nina Donald, were also key. Nina gathered and delivered hearting every day. I thank them for their hard work and trust. "

Roctober in Canada 5

normanhaddow@hotmail.co.uk (Norman) — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 12:06:00 +0000

The outstanding feature at the Thanksgiving Festival at Cornish Hollow was this Cabanne. It was constructed without any support inside . The roof was made by adding diminishing circles of rocks in a cantilever style. The final building was fantastic. It looked and felt like something really special from medieval Europe. I suspect there is nothing else quite like it in Canada.

One has to admire John Shaw-Rimmington and his team of master craftsmen for their skill and hard work. Over a thousand visitors came during the festival and experienced a magnificent three days of entertainment.

To read all about it and the very varied activities going on in North America visit http://www.dswac.ca/

Rocktober Canada 4

normanhaddow@hotmail.co.uk (Norman) — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 07:48:00 +0000

One of the students on the course, Sean Donnelly, returned to his property and rebuilt a long section of retaining wall. The photos show a before and after where he has added a neat set of steps.

Rocktober in Canada 3

normanhaddow@hotmail.co.uk (Norman) — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 08:36:00 +0000

During the Thanksgiving Dry Stone Festival at Cornish Hollow in Ontario I was involved in teaching a group of students . They were constructing a wall typical of those found in Scotland with upright coping stones.Although some of the participants were experienced mortar masons most had done little dry stone work before and together they produced a very solid, long lasting and beautiful stretch of wall. Congratulations to all , Bob Wiskera, Margaret Abernathy, Phil Abernathy, Richard Portelance, Cameron Leseur, Sean Donnelly, Neil Innes, Vivian Walsworth, Sandra Pillar, Myriam Lefebvre, John Scott and Marguerite Long.

Rocktober in Canada 2

normanhaddow@hotmail.co.uk (Norman) — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 17:50:00 +0000

One of the fine craftsmen I met up with this October was Dean McLellan. He was faced with a daunting task of building a wall with granite rocks and boulders which had been rolled about by the North American ice sheet and advancing and retreating glaciers. Dean had the skill to create a beautiful structure from material that many good wallers would have been struggling with. The photos show the starting pile of stone and the finished result. Well done Dean!

Rocktober in Canada

normanhaddow@hotmail.co.uk (Norman) — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 17:33:00 +0000

In June 2006 I posted The Cheese Wedge on this blog. It was designed by John Shaw-Rimmington and built by him and some of his professionals in the Niagara Parks Botanic gardens. This year I was privileged to join John in building the follow up feature,The Veg Wedge, along with several of the horticultural students at the gardens.

What a great combination of fun and hard work it was. Many thanks to Darrell, Greg, Nadine, Justine, Josh, Blair, Blane, Luke (and his Dad) Laura, Lawrence, Ellen, Mat and any others that I have missed or misspelt. The concept designed by John and Evan Oxland will be planted in the spring with climbing vegetables. Next year it will be added to the blog again to show the 9 foot structure in its full glory.

Garden wall

normanhaddow@hotmail.co.uk (Norman) — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 13:42:00 +0000

These photos were sent to me by David Bourne showing work he has done in his garden in the North of Scotland, a retaining wall with steps and a picnic area. This is a good example of what can be achieved by anyone with a real feeling for rocks. With little formal training David has demonstrated what can be done by ordinary folk . He has made his bit of the planet look cared for. Good luck to him and everyone else who realises what a difference dry stone walling can make, then does something about it.

Digging wells

normanhaddow@hotmail.co.uk (Norman) — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 06:46:00 +0000

Back in August 2008 I published a photo of a deep well in France and asked how on earth it could have been dug. The best suggestions I have had were from Scott George in the USA.

On the subject of drystone well construction, when I was much younger, a friend of my grandfather told me they used to dig down a couple of feet and place a large metal ring at the bottom of the hole. They would then lay up there stone to the surface and then dig under the ring to slowly lower it and then add more stone to the top. He said the kept doing this deeper and deeper. I have no idea if this is possible or accurate. Either way, it sounds dangerous. I also have heard that they would excavate the hole, so that the holes depth and width at the top were the same. So a hole 10 feet deep would have a width of 10 feet at the top in the shape of an inverted cone. They would then lay up the well wall and backfill as they went along. This sounds more plausible to me, but that is a tremendous amount of earth being excavated. Where I live many of the wells are around 10 to 20 feet deep and the walls are mortared. I don't think I have ever seen a drylaid well around here. Scott

Tasmanian tracks

normanhaddow@hotmail.co.uk (Norman) — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 07:58:00 +0000

John Hughes has been moving these enormous rocks with his team in Tasmania. They are building pathways using man power. For more information contact him on trackdesign@hotmail.com

Swiss Mountain Pass

normanhaddow@hotmail.co.uk (Norman) — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 12:13:00 +0000

This photo was sent to me by Urs Lippert. The sheep are being driven up a recently restored track in the high alps . An earlier entry ( July 2008 Swiss 4 )showed the reconstruction of this hillside path. I did pass this way before the track was rebuilt and it was very tricky to negotiate then. Great credit to the Swiss who are really beginning to work hard to improve these ancient ways in a most extreme environment.

Swiss work completed

normanhaddow@hotmail.co.uk (Norman) — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 21:23:00 +0000

I am delighted to publish the result of the work carried out this summer by Urs Lippert and his helpers. Wonderful to see dry stone walls being used for their traditional purpose. Something that is becoming more and more rare. The sheep gathering and marking is treated as a festival at Belalp. Have a look back to the blog June 2008 (world heritage site ) to see the scale of repair that was required

normanhaddow@hotmail.co.uk (Norman) — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 11:01:00 +0000

This style and the castellated cope are typical of the walls round Crieff in Perthshire Scotland. This lovely photograph was taken by Blanche. To see other photos by this artist, mainly featuring the wildlife of Scotland go to:

http://www.new.facebook.com/album.php?aid=51169&l=f16a0&id=551445756

Mongolia 3 Eagle Stand

normanhaddow@hotmail.co.uk (Norman) — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 18:51:00 +0000

Another entry from landscape garden designer Duncan Haddow seen here admiring the eagle . http://www.earthmagic.eu

The Kazakh nomads of Western Mongolia are the only people in the world who hunt with Golden Eagles. The eagles are captured when young and trained to catch hares, small deer foxes and wolf cubs.The birds are released back into the wild after eight years. This carefully constructed cairn at the top of a high hill in the Altai range of mountains is used in the winter for hunting eagles to spot their prey.

Mongolia 2

normanhaddow@hotmail.co.uk (Norman) — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 15:35:00 +0000

This shelter on a hill top is used by hunters in the snowy Mongolian winter.The smaller teepee would be for storing gear and supplies. Gaps between the stones were plugged with moss.

Duncan Haddow

Mongolia

normanhaddow@hotmail.co.uk (Norman) — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 11:01:00 +0000

Duncan Haddow has just sent this entry after a time spent in Mongolia.

Dry stone walled area used for livestock in the summer months by nomads next to a "ger" the traditional felt lined tents of the area.

France 4 Faces

normanhaddow@hotmail.co.uk (Norman) — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 16:47:00 +0000

When visiting France you never know what to expect. Just outside a modern church in a small town called Lavandou was this face carved out of stone. Surprisingly in the citadel at St.Tropez was another face looking at me from the end of a brass cannon. I realise that this is not made of stone but I mention it as a work of art which made me wonder why those planning decorations beside a church and a Citadel should be thinking along the same lines.

France 3 A Modern Dolmen ?

normanhaddow@hotmail.co.uk (Norman) — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 06:38:00 +0000

There are ancient standing stones in France especially in Brittany around the Carnac area (which I shall put into the blog in later entries) .These were placed in prehistoric times and built by hand using large numbers of workers with the help of ropes ,tree branches and possibly horses. However in several other places the large flat rocks lend themselves to being set up in modern times by farmers with heavy equipment. Could be fun .

Thanks to Hilary Martin for helping to show the size of this monument.

France 2

normanhaddow@hotmail.co.uk (Norman) — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 15:32:00 +0000

Adolphe-Julien Foure (1839-1910 )carved around 300 fantastic figures on the cliffs at Rotheneuf in Brittany. Here are a few examples of his creations. To see more have alook at http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~fhs/rotheneuf.htm

Rocktober Festival

normanhaddow@hotmail.co.uk (Norman) — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 19:30:00 +0000

I do not usually post coming events on this blog, however this is an exception for three reasons. Firstly I have had great support and many excelent photos from wallers in Canada secondly I like the walls in this particular picture and thirdly I have attended each of the festivals in Ontario found them inspiring and what is more the folk there are really friendly. For more information about the festival contact john@dswac.ca

France Deep Well

normanhaddow@hotmail.co.uk (Norman) — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 12:08:00 +0000

This is a shot down the central well of the Citadel in St.Tropez taken during a recent visit to the South of France. I do not understand how this structure which goes down perpendicularly for many metres can be built .Can someone out there explain the means? Do they start from the surface , if not how are the sides supported while the stone is put in place? It all seems impossible. Please email me if not room on comments to normanhaddow@hotmail.co.uk

Commemorative Seat

normanhaddow@hotmail.co.uk (Norman) — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 19:31:00 +0000

This delightful stopping place in the hills was built by members of the Central Scotland Branch of the DSWA as a tribute to the memory of Frank Moran who was a hard working and much valued waller for many years.

normanhaddow@hotmail.co.uk (Norman) — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 18:42:00 +0000

Here are photos from waller Alan Ash along with his own information.

Here are a few photos of a public works dry stone bridge that I've just completed 1/4 mile up a rugged trail going up to the top Spencers Butte high above the Willamette Valley here in Western Oregon. The seasonal creeks that flow through it can have a forceful flow in our wet season. Western Oregon as well as the Pacific Northwest (or the Northwet!! as it is called) has in areas, times of rainfall exceeding 90 inches a year!! The bridge is 65 foot long, requirements 4 foot wide at the top , 5 1/2 foot wide at the bottom, gravel on top for the trail specifications but no gravel dumped in the "hearting" of the wall.. Many, many stones in the 400 -600 lb range, Most all of the lower course is in that range and many of the capstones. The faces that you see on the stones are their smallest dimension, so it's easy to be mislead about their actual size. It was built to deal with the large amounts of water coming of f the hill as well as to carry powered wheelbarrows, weighing up to a ton fully loaded, to carry gravel for maintenance of the trail. The 65 ton of stone was hauled up the trail by these tracked powered wheelbarrows
Alan Ash /Ash Stone Masonry www.thestonemason.com

Funky Bench

normanhaddow@hotmail.co.uk (Norman) — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 20:01:00 +0000

These photos of a most unusual set of seats and tables was sent to me by Scott George in the USA. It is great for all of us to have the opportunity to see such interesting work. Please keep sending features which help to break the mould that constrains many of us.

Garden Features Swiss 5

normanhaddow@hotmail.co.uk (Norman) — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 09:18:00 +0000

Dani Mettler sent me these photos from the completed work in his garden near Berne. Comfortable seems to cover the feeling when I was with him and the family in his world. The cantilever build over the seat works well and the sets of steps are inviting to adults and children to explore the area.

Mountain Tracks Swiss 4

normanhaddow@hotmail.co.uk (Norman) — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 07:16:00 +0000

While I was not involved with repairing mountain tracks on this trip, I did marvel at some of the work being carried out to make very steep paths safer to walk on. One section which I visited on the way down to view a glacier was being repaired. The previously precipitous path was being changed into a winding way . This required the construction of retaining walls which supported the improved track. The path itself was pitched with large rocks set vertically into the surface. Although some loose stone was available most of the rocks needed were being delivered by helicopter. A tricky and very noisy business.

Another interesting feature were the Kaffer Stein (Beetle Stones) ,these are placed at the side of the paths when the track is running along a mountain side. The purpose of these rocks which are set every two or three metres is to mark the edge when the path is covered with snow.