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the dogs?
👏
£1500 in beer to the person that gives the info over on who dunnit - https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/twice-brewed-sycamore-gap-northumberland-27805002
A 16 year old has now been arrested.
Might not be the best cut ever but it did exactly what the feller wanted.
How do you know it wasn't a woman?
😉
A 16 year old has now been arrested.
While I understand the damage caused, I do wonder what is going on for a 16 year old to do this, or what is to be gained by prosecuting said 6 year old.
All will out in the wash I guess.
mrb123
Free Member
A 16 year old has now been arrested.
And hopefully coughing up some other names about now (I'm doubtful he was alone)
While I understand the damage caused, I do wonder what is going on for a 16 year old to do this,
At 12yo a kid at our school got arrested for "blowing up" a tree with some home made explosives, got to know him later in school life, he was a very gifted but truly crazy kid, sadly died in a motorbike accident at 18yo whilst being his usual wreckless self.
Sunak's 'Levelling Down' agenda for the North gathering pace I see.
I’m happy to concede that dog should have been on a lead, I never intended to debate that. Rule #1 and all that.
I know 🙂 I meant that it made the behaviour of the lads on the quad even more dickish.
Did one of those helicopters get too close? They are "choppers" after all...
his usual wreckless self.
Clearly not.
(sorry)
I do wonder what is going on for a 16 year old to do this,
Playing devil's advocate - a 16 year old can't be named and if charged maybe unlikely to get a huge sentence, unlike perhaps the adults who "helped" him...
You probably have a 16yo who filmed it for Tik Tok who's been arrested, but it was at night in a storm so whoever did it cant be identified and now the police are trying to squeeze it out of them.
Despite the criticism of the felling skills, it's actually not a bad cut in many ways. A decent size tree like that needs a big-ass saw to cut a single swipe through it and it has been done cleanly + its cut very straight too. Whoever cut that down wasn't new to a chainsaw. Certainly not a 16 yo lad I would think.
They are “choppers” after all…
Only if you're American or a bit dim.
Or have a sense of humour.
Or have a sense of humour.
Oh the ironing of you posting that.
Recently in the Lake District National Park, illegal tree felling has been happening on an Island on Lake Windermere.
This conservation area has had several large branches and actual trees cut down from ancient woodland. The culprits are thought to be stealth wild campers, using the wood to build fires.
Lots of trees being vandalised in various areas atm, also fallen branches are taken from private woodland, which should be left to rot naturally for invertebrates and wildlife.
We've come across a violent farmer before while mtbing in the Peak District. His threatening behavior had to be seen to be believed. I was injured at the time and was walking my mtbike on a footpath that passed close to their farmyard.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-tyne-66949986
Some nice pics of the tree as it was and a close up of the chainsaw work for those interested that sort of thing.
I'd horsewhip the ****...really. Such an iconic and beautiful location 🤬
*inserts stealth ad for unseasoned sycamore logs
Police have arrested a 16 year old boy.
obviously a job for Special Branch.
Who breeds these morons ?
Pretty bloody upset by this.
To deliberately go out to in to the field just to cut down the tree, this person has an issue that will continue for the rest of the person's life.
Next they’ll be shooting planning officers. Oh wait…
https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/albert-dryden-shooting-30-years-20859081
If they catch the culprit a community order to plant 10,000 trees at their own expense would be too lenient.
I suggest we brand the silhouette of the scene onto their forehead.
Despite the criticism of the felling skills, it’s actually not a bad cut in many ways. A decent size tree like that needs a big-ass saw to cut a single swipe through it and it has been done cleanly + its cut very straight too. Whoever cut that down wasn’t new to a chainsaw. Certainly not a 16 yo lad I would think.
If they had an arborist licence (or whatever), or working towards it, lifetime ban for all involved would be good.
That’s what they was eluding to @bikesandboots a murder in a different county over 30 years ago. Apparently it makes all this behaviour normal in the north east.
16-year-olds don't mark the correct cut line with white paint before expertly wielding the mahoosive chainsaw they got with a Happy Meal.
Gutted to hear this today. Really made my blood boil. Mindless. They should make the person who did it sit on a chair made out of the stump and explain why he did it to those who walk past.
Rubbish felling job. No professional uses paint to mark a felling cut line or needs a felling cut line. Looks like they had an aborted first effort at a sink cut then went up the tree to try again. It looks like it’s been done by some farm lad who knows a little about felling trees or cutting up firewood or enough regarding how to get a tree down on the ground but not enough to do it in a controlled way or safely. There’s quite a big difference.
We had someone use a chainsaw to cut up one of our toilet block doors and woodwork up in a fe car park fairly recently. Caused thousands of £ of damage. What was more concerning was they tried the same thing on a nearby beech tree and an oak tree but only managed to get 2/3 of the way through before they gave up. They left a 60’ beech tree 2/3 severed leaning over the toilet block ready to fall. It would have killed anyone in the toilets if it hadn’t have been spotted and reported quickly. Mindless.
Raging about this. Mrs Bloke is in mourning, a picture of her hugging it in happier times. 'It's just a tree' but I can't get over how sad and angry this makes me.
Disproportionately angry about this, but at least I got to visit and photograph it for myself.
On the bright side, being a sycamore it will grow 5 new stems this winter and be fully grown again in a decade…
That tree is 300 years old…
It may well grow new stems from the stump, but those will be vulnerable to exactly the same behaviour from mouth-breathers who find some sort of amusement from doing things like that, just because so many derive pleasure from the tree’s presence, and even if they, by some miracle, remain unmollested, it’s going to take several generations to reach any sort of maturity.
😡🤬🤯
Yes this is a mindless act by a moron but given that yet another teenager has been stabbed to death we shouldn't be too surprised by the detritus that lives amongst us.
Just looking at blokeuptheroad's picture up there gives a real sense of scale and importantly, a guesstimate of teh size of saw needed to do the cut. Pretty big bar and motor if its done in one pass... not an insignificant effort for a 16yr old.
The simple question "why" probably is the hardest the culprit will have to answer.
An iconic tree has been felled :-(. By a person or others. Throw the key away...
However, near where I live 40 acres of tree were felled with all sorts of trees and some magnificent oaks. All protected in law.
But the developer interpreted the law how it suited them. The district council has fallen over and they have got away it, so far.
Still, throw the key away. But this happening everywhere both in the the small and large scale.
So sad 🙁 I just feel like giving up.
This is really sad.
Some years back, and local to me, someone cut down Glastonbury's Holy Thorn tree on Wearyall Hill. It was a much smaller tree but a huge tourist attraction and significant pilgrimage site for many.
Local rumour was that it was the landowner who, I think, has regularly tried to obtain permission to build on the hill, but I don't think that anything was done.
Just a thought. One little (faint) glimmer of hope to come out of this, is an awakening in people of the importance of trees in our landscape. We saw similar with the Sheffield street trees a few years ago. I think it's easy for for people to feel sentimental about an individual tree whilst ignoring felling of ancient woodland miles away. But events like this help people make that connection.
If anyone has a few quid to spare, I commend membership of the Woodland Trust to the floor. You can volunteer with them to monitor woods under threat local to you and they will fight to protect them, as well as planting new ones. They are a small charity but punch above their weight.
Planting is all well and good, but it can't recreate our precious ancient woodland any time soon and we have precious little of it left.
Take the train, save the environment! But trains are rubbish, build more trains! Wait no, don't build more trains!
No wonder people get fed up with the environmental movement.
Anyway yes there's a thread for this, I know.
It’s sad that someone cut down this tree but it’s a small thing compared with the environmental vandalism done to build HS2 and other building projects.
As mentioned already, as this an ironic tree it may make people more aware of the other damage. A copse hardly anyone has heard of won’t get the same attention.
Very fair points but HS2 is cutting down acres of ancient woodland which can never be replaced or mitigated for.
People get fed up with the environmental movement because it points out some uncomfortable truths.
Indeed.
As mentioned already, as this an ironic tree it may make people more aware of the other damage.
Yeah, it's like rain on your wedding day, a free ride, when you've already paid.
I too am reminded that councils do this regularly - Perth and Kinross chopped down a Tree of the Year nominee which was much loved and used as a seating shelter on a school site so that the PE department didn't have to walk as far to the plastic pitches for lessons. There was a huge local and pupil campaign - and so they chopped it down overnight and it still was chopped.
+1 on this highlights how we should value and fight for all of nature, not just a single photogenic item.
there was this act of vandalism too not very long ago:
Yeah, it’s like rain on your wedding day, a free ride, when you’ve already paid.
Damn it.
blockuptheroad - that photo is so poignant.
I agree, for a fiver one can join the 'woodland trust'. They have a quarterly magazine, this organisation can help buy swathes of land which 'is suitable' for tree planting (not all land is). They help protect trees and have many activities and tree planting sessions for children. If you have land or are part of a community with spare land, one can apply for free trees.
Atm I feel so tearful and annoyed by ancient trees being felled that I'm possibly going to tie myself to the next tree in danger.
This is a newspaper photo of my neighbour, Kerry, on the stump of a much loved, former tree of the year and iconic local Warwickshire pear tree, felled for no reason by HS2 workers.
This was a few years ago, and the HS2 works near to the site now show clearly that they did not necessitate its felling.
They compulsory purchased land and systematically went about flattening everything on it, necessary to the build or not. A lot of it during COVID when everyone's backs were turned, including large areas of ancient woodland that were vaguely near the intended works.
Few people have any respect, understanding or compassion for the planet that sustains them.
What's happened is hugely baffling and saddening, but, not surprising. An overwhelming amount of people are just terminally Tuesdays.
I hope that it's a political statement highlighting Tory environmental policy failings. Their policy announcements over the last couple of weeks are worse crimes than cutting down a single tree. Which is a tragic mindless act among many if it's not a political statement.
Haven't yet spotted the obvious logo/tree meme potential anywhere. Where's Jamie when you need him?
Word fail me that's so sad. We are loosing species and habitat at an alarming rate and only a few weirdos seem to care, I'm a weirdo!
I am off to ride my bike and seem some nature before it all disappears.
Local rumour on a Cumbrian FB site, the culprit was a worker for the NT, he’d been sacked this week, so went back to pee off his ex employers for being sacked.
Local rumour on a Cumbrian FB site, the culprit was a worker for the NT, he’d been sacked this week, so went back to pee off his ex employers for being sacked.
Yep its definitely going to be someone pissed off with either NT or the council. Not gonna be a 16 year old either way.
I'd put my money on a pissed off farmer.
Where is photoshop when you need it?
Few people have any respect, understanding or compassion for the planet that sustains them.
Plenty of people do. If you polled people to see if they should cut trees down or not, the overwhelming majority would say no. The problem is that we are part of a machine that we cannot control. The people in charge will say 'oh we love trees BUT blablabla' and they cite other reasons that they consider out of their control to do anything about.
The problem isn't people (except for a few high profile cases as above) it's the world we live in that is more or less out of control and no-one feels they can do anything about it.
Below is copied and pasted from a friend's FB profile (she was devastated yesterday - owns a working farm not far from the site). Anyway, a friend of hers shared the below to help ease her emotions...
Acers (European sycamores are Acer Pseudoplanatus) react very well to cutting and respond with strong regrowth. They used to be coppiced to stumps to regrow into fresh poles harvested on a 15 year cycle. In a few weeks it'll be covered in shoots and new growth, next year it'll be a thicket of branches, and in 5 years maybe 30 feet high. It'll arise phoenix like from its ruin. (He's an arborist).
Turn it into a holographic 3D experience like ABBA. You can even get a holographic Morgan Freeman to appear at random intervals. Works wonders at Universal Studios, crowds queuing for hours to see a holographic Harry Potter on a broomstick
(for those w/o a SoH, it's an absolute disgrace. Never been there, never seen it but still oddly angry - even though there are hundreds and thousands of other trees being cut down every year by idiots I can't explain why this has such an impact)
^^^ This is true, but they look gash.
One of the things about the gap sycamore was its proportions and shape relative to its surroundings was perfect. A coppice tree will just be a mess.
They'd be better off installing some sort of Angel of the North style impressive artwork I reckon. Something roman styled would be good. Edge of the Empire and all that.
They’d be better off installing some sort of Angel of the North style impressive artwork I reckon. Something roman styled would be good. Edge of the Empire and all that.
or they could just let the tree grow back rather than some twee manmade sculpture.
One of the things about the gap sycamore was its proportions and shape relative to its surroundings was perfect.
A coppice tree will just be a mess
I guess so, I was just relaying what I'd heard.
This was a particular highlight for me and my walking buddy when we completed the Hadrian's Wall walk with work to raise money for charity. I'm glad I've got a few pics of it as was.
One of the things about the gap sycamore was its proportions and shape relative to its surroundings was perfect. A coppice tree will just be a mess.
An ideal reminder that nature is important, and resilient, even when it looks shit, then.
Not that I'm implying it's not ok to be upset about this particular tree when there are others unnecessarily felled, btw.
I just can't get my head around why you would cut it down.
In a few weeks it’ll be covered in shoots and new growth
And a high security fence, cctv and notices saying please don't cut down the tree.
or they could just let the tree grow back rather than some twee manmade sculpture.
But the 'tree' won't grow back, a random bushy looking mess will grow in its place. I guess people might come and see that...
Plankey Mill...
or they could just let the tree grow back rather than some twee manmade sculpture.
Why would it need to be twee? It could be really impressive. Then taken down in 300 years when the new sycamore has regrown.
"possibly going to tie myself to the next tree in danger. "
I've done that.. bit scarry. But worth it for the fight for the environment. But sadly the developers got their way, they truly exercised their right to destroy :-(.
If you want a miserable ( but a good read) if you hav'nt already read Who Owns England and the Book of Trespass. If you don't own the land, you are nothing 🙁
All in all, it seems to me, that we don't know what we've got till it's gone.
I've been thinking about it all day today, god it's so bewildering why anyone would do this. And it's the same for all these trees that get felled, unnecessarily or for no reason.
I'm lucky, I live amongst trees, next to a forest. But it doesn't make the loss of a beautiful tree miles away any easier.
My only answer right now is to acknowledge the tree will survive, it will grow back. Different of course, although I'll never know. And that what has happened will, in time, become the story of the tree.
They’d be better off installing some sort of Angel of the North style impressive artwork I reckon. Something roman styled would be good. Edge of the Empire and all that.
I've got a plan, they can just borrow the singing ringing tree.
I was devastated to see this. Never been there, probably never will.
Across the field from our house in coastal Ceredigion a new, local, millionaire caravan park owner bought the caravan park opposite.
within days he had his people cut down about half an acre of designated ancient woodland.
No permission or open request made.
we lost bats and owls. Otter poo was also seen at the base of the woodland where it met the stream.
I made his life hell and managed to delay his works for about a year, but ultimately there was no penalty and he got to build what he wanted anyway, just a year later - a gargantuan concrete retaining wall in place of ancient woodland.
It still boils my blood particularly because that is now the view from the back of house.
The council and NRW did nothing. 😔
Mini rant over. Sympathy for what’s happened at the gap in abundance.
I was devastated to see this. Never been there, probably never will.
Across the field from our house in coastal Ceredigion a new, local, millionaire caravan park owner bought the caravan park opposite.
within days he had his people cut down about half an acre of designated ancient woodland.
This absolutely makes me incandescent with rage. These people need plonking on an island, one way ticket only.
Shouldn't the sentence be to 'make good' by tending the tree until it regrows to its former size and shape?
Ditto, for Sheffield's tree hating councillors!
A 60 year old has now been arrested.
Why would it need to be twee? It could be really impressive. Then taken down in 300 years when the new sycamore has regrown.
It has an established root system already, the tree will grow substantially with a few years. Far better than a manmade structure will be seeing a tree mature.
I wonder what the cost of this in lost visitor revenue is for the NT and local economy.
It's still a nice walk but I bet it was the tree that drew in a fair few.
The council and NRW did nothing. 😔
Seems a regular occurrence that people like this run rings around the EA and councils.