My walk this week is in the mid-summer mist of the Swansea uplands known as The Mawr. The sun was shining the day before!
The last time I visited Penlle’r Castell at the highest point on The Mawr, the weather was different to what I was expecting on this occasion in mid Summer – you can see it here ! Uplands are unpredictable landscapes at any time of year I guess. Continue reading
My walk this week looks back at a walk on the North Gower coast and the expansive and beautiful salt marshes of the Loughor Estuary. The walk was originally taken as part of the “Taste of Gower” project in 2015.
Sheep graze the marsh grass and herbs from day to day and when the tides cover the the greenery, they move on and off the marshes via “causeways” such as the one above.
The sense of space and the distortion of perspective gives the place a strange, unreal feeling. Distance is difficult to judge and I suspect you would need to be careful of the incoming tide if unused to the area.Continue reading
upper forest footpath
Changing Forest – My walk this week is one I have been putting off for a few months. This is due to the knowledge that the coniferous area of the woodland was being harvested. I always knew that the trees would be felled some day, and the red paint markings on some of them was evidence that it was going to be sooner rather than later – Continue reading
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.
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
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
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
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.
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
My walk this week is from the burrows and beach at Kenfig on the South Wales coast where, on a sunny Sunday, we heard the most beautiful sound of seaside larks rejoicing in the afternoon sunshine. Both they and the wonderful weather made for a very enjoyable walk through the dunes and down to the expansive beach and an ebb tide.
Heading first for Kenfig Pool, it seemed the water level was up from recent rain and to judge from the route we were forced to take to get to the beach, the recent storms had fulfilled their aim of dumping as much rain as possible in as short a time as possible. Continue reading
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.
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