Can you see Hedgeley gravel quarry?

I’d mentioned last November that, “Even though there’s a gravel quarry at Hedgeley I’m typically blissfully unaware of its existence living at Powburn as I do.” In addition, even when walking around Hedgeley Lakes you wouldn’t necessarily know that gravel was being extracted: it’s not easy to see the extraction machinery when the trees are in full leaf.

However, now that we’re well into Winter and the trees have shed their leaves, it’s now possible to see a little of what’s there and what’s happening. You can get a glimpse of the shape and scale of the machinery needed to extract the gravel close to Low Hedgeley Farm, Powburn.

Gravel quarry machinery seen from Hedgeley Lakes

Gravel quarry traffic at Hedgeley

Just looking back over a few photos that I took in mid August of this year on a quick walk around the Hedgeley Lakes.

Even though there’s a gravel quarry at Hedgeley I’m typically blissfully unaware of its existence living at Powburn as I do. Even walking around the lakes you would not necessarily be aware that gravel extraction was taking place. There is, of course, the sound of the mechanical ‘sieve’ that presumably is separating the gravel by size. However, the sound is fairly well dampened by the river bank, trees and hedgerows – at least from the lakes side – that it doesn’t demand your attention, and you can happily enjoy a peaceful walk.