neilbeasley.com Dry Stone Walling

Otley Town Gateway

This high profile work was completed in association with Otley in Bloom. As part of a programme of Town Enhancement projects, Otley in Bloom set the wheels in motion to create a set of attractive markers near the Town boundary. This is the first of those Gateways and is the culmination of three years of planning and fundraising.

• Preparation

  Good preparation is the key to all works of quality and a dry stone wall is no exception. Of great importance is a good design followed by the careful selection of the right materials.

  Marking up the layout of the wall and then patient application of a hard-learned craft means that every stone fits perfectly into the structure.

  It takes time and a skilled eye to choose each stone to create the intended design but the end product is worth the effort.

• The Finished Result

  This attractive Gateway structure was built over two days in June 2008. Neil worked alongside colleagues from the Otley and Yorkshire Dales branch of the Dry Stone Walling Association.

  The piece has generated a lot of interest from the local community and has already become a much talked-about landmark in this busy Market Town.