Category Archives: Landscape

Landscape overview

My Walk this Week 158 – Uphill from The Waterside

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My walk this week is a welcome return to my friends Sue and Steve at The Waterside in a nearby Welsh valley where they have a beautiful lake and a fascinating herd of alpacas. I wanted to climb uphill from the lakeside to get more of an overview of the valley and the landscape around it. On this particular morning I had spent my time doing admin and taking a break in such a relaxing location was just what I needed.

bluebells on the hillside

Hillside by The Waterside

So after an enjoyable lunch on the First Friday open day in May I took myself off to look at the bluebells and blossom of the hill on the far side of the lake. The sun shone intermittently and Continue reading→

blossom

My Walk this Week 157 – High Tide Deposits and Spring Growth

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My walk this week follows high spring tides on my local marshes and looks at the deposits they left as well as the new wildflower and marsh grass growth coming through with Spring.

Bluebells en route

Bluebells en route

Spring tides occur twice a month every month, as do neap tides, not just in the Spring. The term “spring tide” is given to those tides that have the greatest difference in height between high and low tide, but the highest tidesContinue reading→

Bluebells by the river

My Walk this Week 156 – Springtime Hill

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My walk this week follows an uphill route I have climbed many times in the past but on a sunny Springtime morning felt really fresh and new. Atop the hill the view was very hazy for me and the crow below and I could see across to the far side of the valley and area of woodland that is being harvested for its conifers. My walks through those woods will never be the same again and while I knew that some day the trees would be felled, I feel very sad about it.

Crow with a view

The sunlight and life of this walk on Goppa Hill had no sadness to it and as I walked up the hollow way I was surprised to meet a goat which I thought had a somewhat “knowing” smile on its face. What it knew I cannot say but he appeared to be welcoming enough to a stranger and let me pass on by to say hello to a group of playful young cows in the field above.Continue reading→

Looking south from Pen y Fan

My Walk this Week 146 – Looking Back at the Mountains

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My walk this week is one from the past and came to mind because the Welsh mountains it illustrates came up in a recent conversation. I hope to visit Pen-y Fan in the Brecon Beacons again later this year – or if not that mountain, perhaps a less busy location nearby. The images and sound clip were originally posted in May 2016.

Original Brecon Road

The sounds in the clip below are classic for this mountain area, and that includes the voices of other people. Pen-y Fan, being the highest of the Brecon Beacons and fairly accessible, attracts a lot of visitors, both local and from further afield. Continue reading→

churchyard railings

My Walk this Week 144 – One Way To the Marsh Churchyard

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My walk this week is a one way walk across our local marsh to the old St Teilo’s churchyard. I have walked this route many times before, and posted about it, but on this occasion the marsh grass is taller than I have seen it for several years – and they are my favourite aspect of the marsh.

dancing marsh grass

Bending as it does in the wind, and curving round to see the sun, it appears to me to be dancing – a busy chorus line of uniform activity responding to the elements and singing in their dry rustley voices as the breeze shuffles them together. Continue reading→

sunrise

My Walk this Week 143 – Up Hill and Down Valley

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My walk this week is another early morning one – the moon was setting as I left the house and as I climbed up hill, the sun was just beginning to show its colours reflected on the clouds. I was on this hill, Cefn Drum, last week but on this occasion I was walking in the opposite direction and returned along its opposite side, looking down on Cwm Dulais.

early morning sky

The day promised to be brighter than last week but the clouds kept intervening and the light kept changing accordingly. It was still a beautiful walk and I had not covered part of the route before. Having always looked at the rocky ridge of Twyn Tyle from the far side of the valley,Continue reading→

patchwork landscape

My Walk this Week 142 – Circular Hill Walk

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For my walk this week I started out early, when it was still quite dark, but this circular hill walk was really very enjoyable, even though the sun never managed to break through and the whole day was dim.

Early morning light

The day was just beginning for birds and builders alike and these start-of-the-day sounds accompanied me as I climbed Graig Fawr. Up on top the wind took over and gently buffeted me as I looked through the grasses and old brown bracken to the Loughor EstuaryContinue reading→

Distant Gower from The Mawr

My Walk this Week 141 – Exploring Down from The Mawr

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On my walk this week I went exploring a footpath I have passed on top of The Mawr on many occasions but never stopped for a closer look – until now.

Woodland ravine path

Looking across to the Gower Peninsula in the distance, I stood and enjoyed the wind as it gently swirled around me and brought the sound of skylarks to my ears. Setting off down an old moss covered farm track, it wasn’t longContinue reading→