Sunset Scotland

My Walk this Week 206 – I should have been here now

My walk this week is a re-post of one I made two years ago in the place we should have been now – SW Scotland. But due to the Covid-19 lock down, all holidays were cancelled and so we can only visit virtually.

The evening light in my selected shots of sunsets in SW Scotland show the changing scene from day to day from different viewpoints. Almost all the photos were taken on different evenings but it is easy to take many, many photographs throughout just one evening as the sun sinks down and the light and shade and colours change above in the sky and below in the bay.

Low tide and lowering sun

Fewer clouds this year might have meant less drama, but I don’t think that is ever the case in this place. The skyscape / landscape / seascape is always mesmerising and holds my attention,
in awe again and again at the yellows and reds, greens and blues, and on one occasion pink and grey. The peacefulness is unparalleled at times like these.

Evening Soundscape

This soundscape is not from the same post but is certainly from the same place.

NB The place we stay with these wonderful views is called High Tide. It has been in my family since my grandfather built it in 1937 and although it is currently closed due to Covid-19, we do accept bookings from people other than family and friends. Watch the website for updates on the situation with regards to booking.

oystercatchers

My Walk this Week 183 – Revisitation

My walk this week is a revisitation to Aberavon seafront at this current time of year but from 2016 – the weather is much the same today (as I write) as it was then! But that does not make it any less interesting to me and I remember the walk well, though I admit the images and soundscape are a good memory trigger for the atmosphere.

seafront walkers

It was a dark, wet day with a heavy sea fret coming off the bay, but it wasn’t actually raining and people were walking and running as they always are on this wonderful expansive seafront.Continue reading

golden light

My Walk this Week 180 – Calling Curlews at Sunset

My walk this week is more of the mind than the body with memories of curlews calling in the evening light and sunsets of south west Scotland back in September.

darkening sky

I was particularly keen and hopeful to capture the sounds of the evening birds across the sandy, muddy bay – in particular the curlews, if they were there. In recent posts I have presented soundscapes recorded on my phone but I had taken my field recorder (Fostex FR2-LE) and shotgun mic (RODE NTG 2) for the purpose. And I was in luck –Continue reading

edge land

My Walk this Week 176 – Edging Along Land and Sea

My walk this week comes from the break I had last month and explores the edge of land and sea with rough rocks and calm waters along with the sounds of coastal and mud-loving birds.

rocks and water

I set out along the country lanes of the south west Scottish coast, enjoying the backdrop of the Galloway hills and the textural details of the verges. From a broad beach, empty except for myself and a solitary crow, Continue reading

Tenby harbour

My Walk this Week 165 – Tenby, South Wales Seaside Town

I could have imagined being in the Mediterranean on my walk this week. – It was a bright blue day in the South Wales seaside town of Tenby with its colourful buildings and exotic planting of palms, completed the illusion.

Exotic planting - Tenby

Colour and texture was the order of this day out with the strong blues of the sea and sky and the fascinating textures of the seaweed on the sea wall and ropes tethering the boats.Continue reading

Estuary sunset

My Walk this Week 132 – Estuary Sundown and Soundscape

My walk this week at sundown in Llanelli Bay on the Loughor Estuary allowed me to look out across the mudflats and listen to the gentle ambience of the place as well as enjoy the colours and reflections of the golden sunlight.

mud flat reflections

Like the background sound of a light aircraft on my walk last week in Swansea Bay, there was the almost constant sound of vehicles on the mud and sand doing an unknown but seemingly specific task. However, it did not spoil the soundscape and the calls of various birds mingled with those of children and excited dogsContinue reading

mini shells

My Walk this Week 131 – Swansea Bay Shells

The shells have it in my walk this week on the beach in Swansea Bay – big ones, little ones and multiply connected ones. A beautiful day and some much needed space – there would have been peace as well if it hadn’t been for a light aircraft performing aerobatics overhead. But that was quite an interesting sound, and anyway, as I walked down the beach the sound of the waves masked that in the sky. I’ll post the soundscape on Friday as usual.

multiple shells

One of the best things about Swansea Bay is the expanse of beach when the tide is out and that space was just what I wanted on this morning. There were plenty of other people about enjoying the sunshine and sand (and indeed the blue sky above), but none of that hemmed in any individual and everyone was able to wander the shore in relative solitude and enjoy it in their own way.Continue reading

sea and light perspective

Scottish Seas 2 – Evening Tide

Whether it is the ebb or the flow of the tide, the sea has a gentle gradient to cover in this part of South West Scotland. That does not always mean the waves are gentle but on this occasion the roughest it got can be seen in the third image of the sequence below.

evening ebb

The appearance of the weather in that image is exaggerated by the heavy grain effect I gave it. I like the effect but it tells a lie about the conditions, making them appear less favourable than they wereContinue reading