StillWalks will be present at the NBGW (National Botanic Garden of Wales) next weekend, 18 – 19 August, for the tree festival which features the Ghost Forest. We will be focusing our collection of StillWalks on woodland walks such as the Garden of Wales Woodland Walk and Arboretum Walk at Gelli Aur as well as many others from the collection.
. . . and here’s some from inside the Great Glasshouse.
Sunshine and rain– We’ve been away to foreign parts recently – well, France! More importantly, we managed to avoid much of the torrential rain in Britain during that period. Unbelievably, we arrived home to Britain and Wales to dry, sunny, hot weather – amazing 🙂 Here’s a lovely sunset from the other night to prove it.
Sunset Over the Marshes
Eerie Sounds – There were some strange sounds coming from the marshes and so I went to investigate . . .
All will be revealed – no cudding 😉
Yoiks!
Maybe I was the monster
Adverse Weather Conditions led a scheduled day of equestrian photography to be cancelled at short notice. I didn’t check the website for updates before hand and so ended up down at the show field anyway. The day was dry but the previous week had been very wet. So I took the opportunity to go for a walk along a section of the River Tawe and quickly found myself under a bridge!
Under Bridges – My interest and curiosity about the underside of bridges goes back a long way now. About 14 years ago I was taking photographs of the underside of the second Severn crossing, a striking suspension bridge of the Severn Estuary between Wales and England. It was all part of my research towards designing and weaving a major tapestry commissioned for Caldicot Library in Monmouthshire.
Secret Places – Since then, I have looked at the underside of many other bridges and find them to be quite secret places, even when they are busy with people, it is the side away from public view.
These photos were all taken on my iPhone 4s.
Road and Rail Bridges
Under the Road Bridge
Working on the Rail Bridge
Rail Bridge Structure
The DVLA, Swansea
Another Road Bridge
Underside
Yr Allt, Fan Nedd and Fan Gyhirych are all on a walk I have done in the Brecon Beacons frequently in the past. That past is a long time ago now though and so when I took a day up there recently with my friend Mark, it seemed even better than my memory allowed.
Walking for pleasure was the main reasoning behind the trip but photos and sounds clips taken on the day can be considered a recce for a StillWalks production day later in the Summer.
Skylark – I actually managed to get a half decent photo of one of the many Skylarks up there and some of the sights and sounds from the day can be listened to and seen below. To view more of the photos, visit Flickr. If you can’t see the sound clips, click here to go to the blog.
Shadows on Yr Allt
Pen y Fan in the distance
On the side of Fan Nedd
Old Fencing
Bog Cotton
Maen Llia standing stone
Last Sunday was a beautiful day here in South Wales which encouraged me to take a walk up Graig Fawr. The views over the surrounding countryside are uplifting . . . when the sun is out. Looking west you can see over to Carmarthenshire and looking south the view takes in the Loughor Estuary and the Gower Peninsula.
The wind was blowing and the Skylarks were singing and I needed to get to the top. Here are a few of the photos I took and also a sound clip of those Larks in the wind.
View from the Top
View from the Top 1Loughor Estuary and the Gower
Foxgloves and the Gower
You can hear those Skylarks in the wind here or you can play the clip below if you are already on the blog.
I got these shots the other day during a garden bird count for the RSPB. I’m just sorry I didn’t get a shot of the funniest looking young Blackbird we have frequenting our garden just now with its fluffy feathers stuck out all over the place.
Mother and Baby 1
Mother and Baby 2
Mother and Baby 3
I was also reminding people this week about StillWalks being about the urban as well as the natural environment or countryside. The photos below are from the Abertawe Walk along the River Tawe going into the SA1 area of Swansea.
from Abertawe Walk
from Abertawe Walk
from Abertawe Walk
This little fellow joined us in the marquee at the National Botanic Garden of Wales today.
Chaffinch in the marquee
This was the second day of the Queen’s Jubilee bank holiday weekend when StillWalks joined others helping to alleviate visitors’ disappointment with the weather. People have been enjoying many of the StillWalks available on DVD Collections One and Two – even the Quarry Walk – Autumn Rain walk and the Forest Walk in Winter – not, perhaps, what might be expected in the miserable weather today, but clearly enjoyed all the same.
We’ll be back again in the Great Glass House in the Botanic Gardens on Jubilee day, Tuesday – here’s hoping the weather men are wrong with their forecast for further rain.
Great Glass House
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
Coastal Walk Spring
Coastal Walk Spring