Improving paths & tracks: Part 2
Practical Action
Brushwood
Brushwood does not
make a very
comfortable surface
to walk on but it can
be a useful method if
the ground is very
wet and soft, such as
‘black cotton soil’.
In these
circumstances a lot
of material will be
needed at first before
a dry causeway is
formed. Brushwood
material must be
continually added to
the path until it no
longer sinks and has
stabilised and
consolidated. The
method is illustrated
in Figure 6.
Logs 14-20cm
diameter, placed
one meter apart
Crown of path
50mm higher than
top of logs
Stake
Earth fill from
ditch
Original ground
Figure 5: Turnpike section with timber edging
Ditch
Geotextile
Brushwood laid
membranes
across the path
In soft ground the use of
geotextile membranes can be
effective in constructing a
stable path or track. The
purpose of the membrane is to
separate the material used for
the path construction from the
underlying soil. This prevents
the path’s foundation material
from sinking into the soft
ground and eventually being
lost.
Brushwood sinks into
soft soil
Figure 6: Brushwood causeway
Suitable geotextile
membranes are made from polypropylene and polyethylene, and are manufactured in several
different thicknesses. They are supplied in rolls, typically about 4 to 5 metres wide and 200
metres long. Proprietary geotextiles are relatively expensive and may not always be
affordable. Possible substitutes are old fertiliser bags or large sheets of heavy-duty plastic.
Hessian is also a cheap and easily available alternative – but it will eventually rot away.
The membrane can either be laid at ground level, as shown in Figure 7, or at the bottom of
an excavated trench on the line of the cleared path. In both methods, the membrane should
be cut wider than the finished path. The edges of the material can then be tucked into the
adjacent soil to fix it securely.
Sandy areas
Areas of loose sand may appear to present the opposite problem to wet and waterlogged
soil, but many of the same techniques can be employed for improving paths and tracks
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