Nov 2017 Rock Wall

Sadly a year after our attempts to save the retaining white wall around the retreat, it became evident our efforts had been in vain. The original wall, made out of lightweight bricks just weren’t strong enough to endure yearly weathering and the natural subtle movements of the mountain land. Large cracks continued to form, this time between the buttresses and sooner or later the entire wall would fall down. We needed a solution that would work to retain and enclose the whole area of land on which the retreat lies. It had to be flexible enough to accommodate movements of the land and allow for rainwater to pass through without building up. A tall order but we decided to drain our last pennies of contingency and opt for a rock wall from limestone, sourced from a local quarry only 10km away. Each rock was individually split, skilfully hand chipped away, sculptured into place to form the beautiful crafted piece of traditional workmanship that you can see today. It’s a defining structure that allows the retreat to sit safe, proud and tall, an iconic piece of traditional architecture and local craftsmanship.