Crossing the Bridge

Posted on 03/02/201603/02/2016 by Alastair

There are many different aspects to the valley in which The Waterside – Felindre is situated. My walk this week is only around the lake and today’s post takes us across the footbridge at the northern end. Listening to the sound clip below, I like the layering of the sound of my footsteps on the wooden bridge with the different aspects of sound from the water as I approach, cross and then walk away from the bridge.

The woodland on one of the steep sides to this valley and more open fields on the other give the place an intimate, peaceful feel – a perfect place to relax and enjoy the facilities and hospitality of Sue and Steve Heatherington who run both The Waterside and Welsh Valley Alpacas.

My photos today are looking at one or two of the details of the lakeside.

On Friday this week (5th Feb) 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.

Crossing the Footbridge

If viewing this in an email, to see the sound player you will need to visit the blog – please click the post title to view the full post.

Stepping Down to The Waterside

Posted on 02/02/201602/02/2016 by Alastair

The first part of my short walk around the old reservoir, now a lake at The Waterside, was wet underfoot – hardly surprising given all the rain we have had this winter. The dampness is, of course, ideal conditions for moss to grow and these steps down the the lakeside are covered in the stuff.

But I love these steps and the fact that they are being taken over by nature to the point where, from certain angles, they are so well camouflaged as to be almost completely hidden. The rise above the lake from which the steps descend gives an excellent opportunity to enjoy reflections in the water.

Wet Footsteps

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Wintry Walk Soundscape and Reviewing the Week 55

Posted on 31/01/201631/01/2016 by Alastair

I am ending this week’s walk where I started, amongst the trees of Blaenige at MLRUK in Carmarthenshire. The wind had picked up at this point but as I love the sound of the wind in different trees, I was very happy to record it, albeit on my small Edirol recorder which doesn’t stand up to the wind in the same way my RODE mic does.

There may be some rumble in the soundscape below as a result of the wind, but it does not spoil the memory experience for me, though it does mean I won’t be producing a StillWalks video with it.

As a soundscape rather than a StillWalks video, it is unlikely that the sounds will match the images if you play it at the same time as looking at the photos, but perhaps it will still help to provide a better sense of place.

Blaenige Soundscape

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Lost in the Woods

Posted on 27/01/201627/01/2016 by Alastair

I didn’t get lost on my walk this week but I did come across this old shed that had the distinct appearance of being abandoned and lost in the woods. On closer inspection, it appeared that it may still be in use – I couldn’t say for sure, but I did like the aged appearance of it. Covered in moss, spider webs and snow the rusty corrugated iron sheets seemed well camouflaged in the winter woodland.

My descending approach to the shed took me through some deeper snow, the sound of which can be heard on my first post for this week. Care had to be taken and you can hear the point in the clip where I stumble. The rough track and the need to clamber over brambles to reach the shed again suggested it may no longer be in use, but who knows – the ways of those working the land will, perhaps, always hold some mystery.

Woodland Birds

If viewing this in an email, to see the sound player you will need to visit the blog – please click the post title to view the full post.

The penultimate photo in this sequence (cobwebs) can also be seen in monochrome at Leanne Cole’s Photography blog post Monochrome Madness MM 2-42.

My Walk this Week 18 – First Snow

Posted on 25/01/201625/01/2016 by Alastair

This winter has been so mild it came as a bit of surprise to find myself driving carefully through snow on my way to a meeting in Carmarthenshire. The meeting was at Blaenige, the home of MLR UK with whom I have been working for a while now to develop a StillWalks business package. The meeting finished in good time, and as I had brought most of my kit with me, I took the opportunity to go for a short walk down one of the steep hillside tracks through the farmland and woods.

There wasn’t a lot of snow and it was already melting during my walk but considering I hadn’t expected to see any this year, it wasn’t unwelcome and as the sky was partially blue, my walk this week, though short, was quite exhilarating.

One aspect of the walk which is changed with the snow is the environmental sound. Below I have included three sound clips of my footsteps in the changing snow. How much difference can you hear in them.

Crunchy Snow

Deeper Snow

Wet Snow

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Goodnight Belfast and Reviewing the Week 54

Posted on 24/01/201624/01/2016 by Alastair

My city walk was taken through the day but this photo looks across the River Lagan in Belfast later that same evening. The horizontal line of lights in the dark are christmas lights running along the crane featured near the start of the walk.

This was a Winter city walk taken on Boxing day a few years ago. There is only frost on the riverside footpath at the walk and the bare branches of trees by the crane to prove the season. However, a couple of days later the river was frozen over and covered in snow, but we had left to return to mainland Britain by that time!

Click the sound clip play button below and then the first thumbnail image to view the walk images in sequence.

City Ambience

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Frozen Footpath by the River Lagan

City Patterns

Posted on 21/01/201621/01/2016 by Alastair

Walking around Belfast revealed many fascinating structures in the architecture. The camera can be a very useful tool when it comes to focusing on aspects of buildings that create fascinating patterns when isolated from their surroundings. The patterns are there anyway but it is not always easy to pick them out amongst the complexity of their surroundings. Sometimes, of course, it is a combination of structures seen from a particular angle that does the trick.

City Sounds 2

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Suburban Night Walk and Reviewing the Week 53

Posted on 17/01/201617/01/2016 by Alastair

The location of this walk and the time of year (a mild winter in Middlesbrough) is the same as the pervious week’s daytime walk, but the sense of it is quite different at night. Once again this is not a StillWalks video, but I hope you can still enjoy listening to the soundscape while viewing the images.