My winter walk round Lower Lliw Reservoir from a couple of years ago patterns I am not used to seeing. Snow always transforms the landscape but I am more used to seeing it as sheets or blankets of white on fields. More often than not it has melted off the branches of trees before I am in a place to appreciate it. That being the case, I was really excited by the patterns and textures revealed in the woods surrounding the reservoir. I wonder when I will next see this scene?
The first photo can also be seen in Leanne Cole’s Photography blog post Monochrome Madness MM 2-48 – even though it’s not actually in monochrome!
My walk around Lower Lliw Reservoir in the Lliw Valley north of Swansea was indeed an unusually snowy one. The snow sat on the fence and though it melted slightly throughout the day, not so much that there was any less than you see below at there end of my walk.
The sound clip below, from my field recording for the walk, reveals the unique sound of my (few) footsteps in the snow as it was at the time of starting the walk. Even though there was not an appreciable difference in the state of thaw at the end of the walk, I would be willing to bet that had i recorded my footsteps in the same place on the footpath a second time, it would have sounded different. It is surprising just how much difference the state of the snow makes to the sounds that it makes underfoot or indeed the surrounding environment.
Starting Out
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My optimism for a bright day at the start of this hill walk up Graig Fawr meant I was taken by surprise when, as I arrived on the upper reaches of the hill, snow started falling behind me from the west.
I turned to see the clouds fast approaching and the whole atmosphere of the landscape changed. Fortunately it didn’t last long, but even so, I was reminded that this is what you have to watch out for in a landscape like this.
The Mawr uplands may not be very high or large in scale in comparison to many other places, but that does not mean you can’t get disorientated. However well I think I know the place, I would always treat it with respect. It was on a bright sunny day in Summer when I misread the landmarks up here. This didn’t cause a problem but it did mean that we took a different route to that intended.
My nearest landmark, in the form of the triangulation point, was in view through the snow and as it turned out, I only had to wait ten minutes for the sun to came out again and allow me to view the falling rain on the far side of Cwm Dulais.
Walking back towards the seafront from the marina in Swansea Bay I passed three of the many sculptures situated in the Maritime Quarter. These are three of several weather vane art works for which Robin Campbell was responsible as an architect working with Swansea Council in the ’80s and 90’s. I can remember sculptor and potter, Martin Williams, working on this first piece in the studio next door to mine (see yesterday’s post).
The weather vanes are clearly all still fully operational as the wind direction indicated by each tallied with the others. If the wind seemed calmer in the shelter of the marina on this walk, on my return to the seafront it was again obvious and bringing further murky weather over from across the bay at Mumbles where you can just about make out Mumbles Lighthouse.
I am not often walking on Swansea Bay when the tide is in – for some reason it seems to be out far more often. This must be coincidence but it means that when I am there when the tide is high, it feels new and fresh, a bit like the way snow changes the landscape.
The tide was not particularly high on this occasion but it was still lapping at the foot of the promenade steps and this, for me, is an almost iconic sound of the place. So click the play button below for an aural backdrop to the images posted about my walk this week. Click the first thumbnail image to view them in sequence.
Waves on Promenade Steps
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All sorts of stuff had been washed up on the beach to entertain me on my Swansea Bay walk this week. Everything from a colourful tree stump to a limbless doll. The sand, too, gets washed up into some interesting drifts – I can only imagine the state of the windows of the apartments on the promenade. Having lived on a seafront in the past, I know how quickly the salt and sand builds up in the Winter months.
My walk this week sees more changeable weather. There were plenty of other people walking and running in spite of the wintry wet conditions which says something for the attraction of Swansea Bay. Fortunately, from the point of view of photography, what can feel like miserable weather for walking, can produce some “atmospheric” images.
Looking out for those shots can also help with the mental attitude to walking in this weather and as it didn’t continue raining for too long, the walk was in fact very refreshing and entertaining.
It wasn’t just the able bodied who were using the promenade – having said that, take a close look and you will see that the runner below is clearly very able bodied!
If you listen carefully to the sound clip below, you should hear the intermittent tone of Mumbles lighthouse in the distance as well as footsteps and an intrepid cyclist.
Windy Seafront
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When I drove over to The Waterside – Felindre I had an expectation of taking this walk, but on arrival it was pouring rain. I thought, “I must get my recording kit out and capture the sound of the rain on the cabin decking and the lake surface“. However, by the time I was set up and ready to go outdoors, the rain stopped! Strangely, it did not rain again that day.
There were clouds in the sky as can be seen in the images below, but it was also quiet and calm, at least from time to time, and so the surface of the water was unbroken by anything other than very gentle ripples.
That is one of the exciting things about The Waterside – the weather being unpredictable means that the views and the sounds, the whole atmosphere of this small, South Wales valley, can change constantly throughout a day. Having the optional warmth of the log burner in the comfort of the cabin means that you can always view the scene from a dry place. But if you have come equipped for wet weather (as we must do in this part of the world), then the rain need not stop you enjoying everything else the valley offers.
Tomorrow (Friday) StillWalks will be at The Waterside running presentations about the StillWalks package for businesses and organisations. If anyone is interested in coming along to this regular open day at The Waterside, please check out the website above and contact us in advance.
Peace at The Waterside
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