The Iconic tree at Sycamore Gap felled.

One wonders why.
Who could possibly gain ?
(Other than the local souvenir shop, who next year will be selling off wooden trinkets made from the 'real tree' )

Obviously it will be replanted, with great ceremony, but it will be at least a century before generations not yet born see the famous view.
 
I have read that local farmers and landowners have been complaining about the tree being such a draw to tourists, who they blame for damage to fences, gates and land
 
This took some thinking about, take a chain saw up there etc. I can’t see what anyone would hope to gain by this. It is right by the wall and the path, so not like any landowner is going to gain any land by getting rid of it. It will be interesting to see what eventually emerges. It seems to have been at night, so unlikely to be “mistaken identity”.
 
What is very odd is it's in the middle of nowhere.

It's about 10 miles to the nearest village, it's a good half mile from the nearest road and a couple of miles from the nearest house..

It's a long way to lug a big chain saw in the middle of the night. Plus fuel, plus lights.

And from what I can see of the cut, it looks like they have just gone straight through, not an angled cut like a tree surgeon would do.

I can only hope they find a body under the felled tree once it's cleared, as, with a cut like that, it would have been very difficult to predict the direction of fall, especially in the dark.
 
TheBig1 said:
I have read that local farmers and landowners have been complaining about the tree being such a draw to tourists, who they blame for damage to fences, gates and land
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Well if it was a local land owner, they are about to be inundated with people damaging their land, gates and fences.

Bet they did not expect their bit of vandalism to be the top item on the national news !

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I'm so sad I am lost for words. I lived most of my life in the North East and have many happy memories of playing/walking there and introducing friends to the delights of Hadrians wall often using Sycamore Gap as a starting point.
:crying1::crying1::crying1:
 
TheBig1 said:
I have read that local farmers and landowners have been complaining about the tree being such a draw to tourists, who they blame for damage to fences, gates and land
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That was my first thought, someone who is affected by the footfall passing their door or garden.
l do think they will find the culprit.
 
someone didn't like all the visitor traffic .. ?

many tourist spots and attractions are suffering from tourist fatigue..

before the www and in particular, social media, there were lots of secret places to visit.. wild camping spots, waterfalls, beaches, coves, etc... passed on by word of mouth,.. now they are broadcast on the web and soon inundated and ruined ..

I think this tree is just another victim
 
TheBig1 said:
I have read that local farmers and landowners have been complaining about the tree being such a draw to tourists, who they blame for damage to fences, gates and land
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Living in the area I have not heard anything along those lines, we all welcome tourism it brings a lot of money into the area, supports many local businesses, holiday let’s and the like. Locally there is real outrage that this mindless vandalism has occurred and if proved to be someone local there will I imagine be repercussions from the local community.

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TheBig1 said:
I have read that local farmers and landowners have been complaining about the tree being such a draw to tourists, who they blame for damage to fences, gates and land
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I had really struggled to think of a reason behind this . This makes perfect sense.
 
Littlewheels said:
That was my first thought, someone who is affected by the footfall passing their door or garden.
l do think they will find the culprit.
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The Hadrian Wall trail passes nowhere near any householders doors or gardens and for the most part is rugged wild terrain.
 
Littlewheels said:
I understand that but the people do start from a location that has parking etc.
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Car parking in the central section of the wall covering a lot of miles is in secluded quite isolated car parks some favoured by wilding Motorhomes.
 
TheBig1 said:
I have read that local farmers and landowners have been complaining about the tree being such a draw to tourists, who they blame for damage to fences, gates and land
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Perhaps the National Park Authority and National Trust should declare the site a special memorial to all senseless damage to our natural environment. They could encourage nature pilgrimages to the spot and organise festivals to commemorate the selfish felling of the tree. They could even create a free aire nearby so that us motorhomers could stop off to pay our respects to the stump. It would be good for the local tourist industry and give the complainants something to think about.
 
With the westerly gales last night (which would have masked any noise), the deed was probably done in less than 10 minutes as there was no concern about where it fell, so no directional "gob" cut, just an assassination and the wind has simply blown the tree across the wall, definitely a case of "malice aforethought ?
It's not far from the old Military road, the B6318, but there's not really any parking on that section of the road opposite the "gap" as it has bad verges and, if I remember, a bit of a deep gutter too ?
I always thought that for such an iconic view, there was no effort made to put a layby or simple pull in there to let passing traffic stop for a pic, but maybe that's contributed to the desecration if people have been hindering traffic and trampling over fences ?
All in all a sad reflection on society, a bit like the Crooked House pub demolition ?
 
Pausim said:
They could even create a free aire nearby so that us motorhomers could stop off to pay our respects to the stump.
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The National Park and EH have that area stitched up, they already charge for absolutely everything as it is.

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TheBig1 said:
I am hoping that the trunk is preserved and maybe carved into a suitable art installation on the site
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Coastal Cruiser. said:
You won’t do much with what’s left☹️☹️
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Perhaps Antony Gormley or another sculptor could be crowd funded to replace the original tree with a sculpture that provides an identical silhouette on the skyline. I would contribute.
 
I took am deeply saddened by this act of vandalism. I visited the wall in June and walked from once brewed and was blown away by the sight as it came onto view.
I'm glad a experienced it and feel for the generations that won't get the chance.
I took hope the body of the idiot who did this is found under the trunk.
 

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