This Saturday, we thought it would be a good time to tackle one of the more arduous jobs at Hotchley Hill, before the weather gets warmer than it already is. Over the years, the building seems to have fallen slightly, relative to the track. Nature has piled up soil against the low walls, well above the level of the damp-proof course. Fixing this required a lot of digging!
As well as helping the walls dry out, we took the opportunity to look for a buried access cover for the drains on the north side of the box (we didn't find one) and to start providing safe access around to the back of the box on the south side. The embankment is covered in loose ash, nettles, bits of scrap iron (pictured) and broken glass. We hardly want to make skittering down it a matter of routine. Interestingly, we also found many fragments of coal in the soil at the front of the box. Perhaps it was unceremoniously thrown off a passing train for the use of the signalman?
Meanwhile, the boards over the locking room windows were temporarily removed. This allowed inspection of the galvanised steel window-frames, and a rare view of the lever frame in sunlight. We attempted to clear the blocked drain on the north-east corner of the building with a drain-snake, but without much success.
As mentioned last week, we would be particularly interested to hear from someone with woodworking experience, although anyone willing to help is always welcome!
