Rainy Days in Wales and England

Posted on 05/05/201205/05/2012 by Alastair

Sorry to those of you who noticed the lack of a blog entry last week. Here are a couple of the many reasons for the omission.

Pant-y-Sais Fen – Last Friday I discovered this place by Jersey Marine near Swansea. This was part of a bird song identification walk with Bob Tallnack and others from the Gower Ornithological Society. It was most enjoyable in spite of the rain and the fen by Neath Canal is a beautiful place where I hope to do produce a StillWalk on some dry day in the future. More photos can be seen on Facebook.

You’ll need to click on the blog title in order to listen to the Chaffinch in this place as it can only be viewed on the actual blog.

Neath Canal near Pant-y-Sais Fen, Jersey marine.

York’s River Ouse oozes out – It was still raining when I attempted a production day in York last Sunday – the photos here show the evidence. Fortunately, Monday morning brought the sun with it and although the waters had not receded much, I was still able to get the images and sound I need to produce a new StillWalk.

River Ouse, York

Millenium Bridge, River Ouse, York

From the Millennium Bridge, Millenium Bridge, River Ouse, York

River Ouse, York

Monday Sun, River Ouse, York

If I were to associate a StillWalks with this blog entry, I think it would be Quarry Walk – Autumn Rain even though it is the wrong season.

Therapy at its Best in Scotland

Posted on 14/04/201214/04/2012 by Alastair

Featured StillWalks – Coastal Walk Spring

For me, this is therapy at its best! Recently we had some unexpectedly good weather for the time of year and it reminded me of slightly later in the Spring last year when this StillWalk was produced.

Downloads – Coastal Walk Spring is from the South West coast of Scotland. The sample version on the StillWalks website is only 1.5 minutes of the full 6.5 but gives a good taste of a walk well worth downloading. There are some fascinating temporary sculptures on the stony beach. They can also be found in Coastal Walk Evening where they look like sentinels watching the tide.

FREE StillWalks – If you have not already signed up for FREE to StillWalks, you will be able to download a walk of your choice FREE when you do.

Here are some of the images from the full length walk – enjoy 🙂

Coastal Walk Spring

Wildfire

Posted on 31/03/201231/03/2012 by Alastair

Recently we have had some unusually hot weather for the time of year and the other day I discovered this –

Aftermath of Wildfire on the Marshes

Not as dramatic as the fires in canberra in 2003 which my friend, Simon, who lives there, was telling me about a little while ago. He described the incredible speed at which the fires spread across the length of this hill which he can see from his house.

Canberra fires 2003

The photo sent to me can also be seen on Wikipedia along with much more info.

The land in Australia is at least “designed” by nature to cope with this kind of conflagration and I am sure that nature, being what it is, will allow the marshes to recover quickly as well. However, it is still a heart rending sight to see the damage that fire can cause.

Sunrise and Robins – Having taken some photos of the results of the marsh fires, I then caught the sun coming up and enjoyed immensely the sound of this Robin which would be part of Week 9’s Marsh Wood birds recording – more available on SoundCloud. More photos on Flickr, and Facebook.

Sunrise

Production Day – Ryer’s Down

Posted on 17/03/201217/03/2012 by Alastair

Two weeks ago I went did a recce walk on Ryer’s Down on the Gower. Starting just along the road from Burry Green, the weather was misty but the sun just about got through at one point – though not quite!

Gower Mist

Then, at the beginning of this week, I took some exploratory shots near the mouth of the River Loughor – the light was particularly difficult in the early afternoon because the sun was only half managing to to push through that same mist. This Little Egret is one of many on the Loughor Estuary.

Little Loughor Egret

I went ahead with the planned production day later in the week in the hope that, if I started out in mist, there was a reasonable chance I would finish in some sunshine – fat chance! The StillWalk that will be produced from that day will have to be titled “Misty Gower Walk” I think. It was still a beautiful walk however, and the Skylarks sang for me as well which would lift the heart of the most miserable soul. You can listen to them on SoundCloud and find out about them on the RSPB website.

Looking up Ryer's Down, Gower

And here are a couple of images that describe the different state of weather on the recce walk and the production day.

Looking down from Ryer's Down, Gower on the Recce Walk

Looking down from Ryer's Down, Gower on Producton Day

More photos from the recce walk can be seen on Flickr as well as many more from other explorations.

The Ryer’s Down production day was the first one where I used the full sound recording and photography kit simultaneously throughout the walk but I am going to write a separate post about the more technical aspects of the kit and production. Suffice to say for the moment, that I was very tired by the end of the day.

Finally, remember, anyone interested in the weekly recordings and photos I am getting down on the marshes can find them on SoundCloud and Flickr. Better still, download a StillWalk or two from the website and enjoy virtual walks in many different places at different times of year.

Before and After

Posted on 11/03/201211/03/2012 by Alastair

As a follow up to yesterday’s post, I have to report a change to one of my favourite locations, namely the old St Teilo’s Churchyard.

St Teilo's Churchyard - Before

St Teilo's Churchyard - After

Something is missing!

St Teilo's Churchyard - Previously

It won’t look like this in the Summer anymore! I am very glad my StillWalk of the churchyard features it in this happier state rather than the current state. These large, well established trees were cut down in order to renovate a wall. :-/

Beautiful Morning – Beautiful Sounds

Posted on 28/01/201228/01/2012 by Alastair

It was a beautiful bright morning this morning and I decided I just had to get out to look and listen to the sights and sounds in the park and on the marshes. Had thoughts of a new, part time project – to record at the same time each week the sounds from the same spots in this location over the period of a year and then look back and see (or hear) how they change with the seasons. Question is, will I be able to persuade myself to do it when the weather is horrible, as it is often enough in Wales!

Remember, if you’re reading this in an email, you’ll need to go to the blog to listen to the sounds – the Song Thrush is really lovely! 🙂

Early Morning in the park

Song Thrush

Early morning over the marshes

Wind and Rain in Scotland

Posted on 25/01/201225/01/2012 by Alastair

Last month during a visit to the north of Scotland I recorded some interesting sound clips. There is a story attached to this visit and that will be published soon. In the meantime, these sounds and pictures give a little info on the Scottish weather during a mild winter. Remember, if you are reading this in your email, you will have to visit the actual blog to listen to the sound clips. You can also enjoy a sample StillWalk from this visit at http://youtu.be/nTsd_gz8Qmw