RANGERS at Finlaystone Country Estate, Langbank, on what's happening at the local beauty spot.

WE have continued to welcome a large number of school groups throughout June, taking classes out for interesting and stimulating walks in the woodlands.

The most popular topics this year have been Mini-beasts, Art in Nature, Tracks and Trails, My First Nature Walk, and Plants and Animals. We have also had a great time running team-building and problem-solving exercises, predominantly with the older primary classes.

The weather has been very disappointing because of all the heavy rain this month. However, this has resulted in all the plants and flowers in the garden having plenty to drink and has cut down on the watering the gardener would have had to have done! Our woodlands are also looking wonderfully green and there is plenty of mud for little ones to jump around in. The Rangers are still carrying out vital conservation tasks across the estate and visitors will see evidence of this while walking our woodland trails.

We mentioned in our last blog a couple of events. There was the adaptation of ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ by the Youth Section of Greenock Players. Thankfully, the evening was relatively dry and it seemed everyone enjoyed the show, especially the midges.  The actors obviously put a lot of effort and preparation into the performance and it was wonderful to watch under an evening sky in our woods. The following day we had a pirate event. We had plenty of pirates and it seems everyone enjoyed playing along – especially on the pirate ship.

Unfortunately, we had some more damage because of vandalism on the estate a few days ago. This was in addition to a graffiti attack on signage and a disabled tenant’s car a couple of weeks back. We are obviously upset and disappointed by this vandalism and are pleased to know that the police are investigating.

On a happier note, our annual summer craft Fair is this weekend, Saturday 25 and Sunday 26 June, and we will have a wide variety of stalls selling home-made crafts and wares. This is always a popular event and we look forward to welcoming many visitors.

If you would like to find out more about our events please check our website www.finlaystone.co.uk. Alternatively, look us up on Facebook or follow us on Twitter.

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