HOW to tame a raging burn which adds to flooding problems in Haltwhistle proved a problem for the Tyne Rivers Trust – until the clock was turned back to more gentle times.

The Slaty Sike is a tributary to the Haltwhistle Burn, which is regularly in spate, its powerful currents transporting a lot of sediment into the burn, leading to flash floods.

The trust decide to slow the flow of water in the sike by piling logs into the water, which would impede the flow just enough for much of the sediment to drop out before reaching the bigger watercourse.

However, using heavy machinery to access the sensitive site would have scarred the landscapoe – so the trust turned to Jimmy the horse.

Owned by Amber Horse Logging, Jimmy hauled around 10 tonnes of timber through steep fields to the edge of the burn.

Much of the work was through muddy, wet ground and would have been difficult for vehicles or machinery, as well as causing a lot of damage to the ground.

Director of the Trust Susan Mackirdy, said: “Jimmy and the rest of the team worked hard in hot weather to roughen the stream bed to slow the river down.

“This required access over steep, wet land and into woodland.

“Horse power has a much lower impact compared to a 4x4 or quad bike and meant we could get the logs much closer to the stream, which made it the best option for transporting the logs to site.

“It was a green solution, for a green site.”

The work formed part of the Defra-funded Haltwhistle Burn Catchment Restoration Fund project.

Ian Benson designed the enhancement work and oversaw the project on site.

Ian said: “The decision to use horses has come from access issues and through the need for us to reduce the impact in an already wet and sensitive site.

“The water has made us revert to traditional methods proving that, sometimes, the old ways are the best!”