Tag Archives: thistle

Descending Mist

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Having started my walk this week in the forest at the foot of Mynydd Rugog, I clambered out of the woods and onto the side of the mountain to find mist slowly descending from the summit. I followed and old fence and wall directly up to the track that zig zags up from a farm down by the road and though as long as I can clearly see the path I’ll carry on.

Misty Mountains-11

Mist descended

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old fence wire
rust coloured stone
Descending mist
Thistle
mountain wildflowers
Mountain mist
Mist and grass

Bright Yellow Buttercups – Reviewing the Walk

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My walk this week started with the birth of an alpaca – a Spring / early Summertime event that was reflected in all that surrounded me on this walk, including these bright yellow buttercups on the banks of the lake at The Waterside. A place I will be visiting again next week so I guess I will get to see how the little ‘un is getting on and may even meet another newborn from what I have heard.

buttercups in the valley

buttercups in the valley

Listen to the soundscape and take a loo at the image sequence at the same time

The Waterside Walk Soundscape

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new born alpaca
new born alpaca
Tadpoles
Foxgloves
Thistle
Bullrushes by the lake
Stepping Up
Mother and Child
A Sparkle of Sunlight
Riverlight 1
Focusing minds, making connections
Lakeside reeds
stallion and mare
waterflow
buttercups in the valley

Wildflowers Down by The Waterside

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While the drama of a new alpaca being born was going on “back at the ranch” (see yesterday’s post), I was enjoying a very peaceful stroll around the lake at The Waterside. While there is so much growth during this time of year, the specific time cycle of development is slightly different for each plant and many wildflowers and this will vary further according to the conditions from year to year and location to location.

So we see here in this hidden South Wales valley the foxgloves in full bloom but the thistle flowers just coming through, the dandelions seeding and the bullrushes getting ready to disperse their seed. There seems to be so much going on – as I have said in previous posts, nature has pounced!

Bullrushes by the lake

Bullrushes by the lake

Lakeside Birds

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Foxgloves
Thistle
wildflowers
Dandelion clocks
waterside grasses
Bullrushes by the lake

Going to Seed

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Thistles – another irresistible subject for photography!

These photos were taken on my Canon 550D with a Canon 70-300mm IS USM lens. However, it is also important for me to keep developing my skills with iPhone photography or iPhonography as it is often my phone camera that I have with me when out walking.

With so much to see, I wouldn’t want to miss an opportunity, yet at the same time, it is not practical to always have heavy camera slung over your shoulder.

thistle

Thistles

Thistle

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Another image I like but that I did not select to go into the StillWalks video below.

Woodland Thistle

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Far and Near – A Look at the Land

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Here is a view of a place I have not seen from this angle before – looking over Hendy from one of my evening walks. I have done the walk many times but never ventured quite so far into the field on the hill. The 11 arched railway bridge over the River Loughor can be seen from other vantage points but none of them have the same green landscape in the foreground – buildings and telegraph lines tend to get in the way.

Snapped on my iPhone, I made the mistake of zooming in – just slightly, but it was still a mistake. Always crop afterwards if need be, but don’t use the zoom function as it is digital, not optical and the effect is a blurred image. I’ve done my best with it.

I did not use the zoom function in the close up of a thistle in the field – I didn’t need to. There were loads of them, the tallest I have seen!

View over Hendy

Thistle

Thistle in the Sand

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These thistles are naturally designed for this environment. More than that, they look as if they have been designed full stop! Their colour, pattern, shape, form, texture – all fit  perfectly with other aspects of the area, particularly the spikiness of the grass and, of course, the contrast of the soft sand.

You wouldn’t want to sit down on one! Those spikes are mighty sharp and I guess this may be a hazard to be aware of during the Summer months in the Millennium Coastal Park at Llanelli. All photos taken on my iPhone.

Llanelli Beach Landscape-3

Llanelli Beach Plants-1

Llanelli Beach Plants-2

Llanelli Beach Plants-3

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A Countryside Connections Walk

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Swansea Countryside Connections Team, through which StillWalks ran the Sights and Sounds of the Countryside project, put on a number of events throughout the year for those living in eligible rural wards in Swansea. It was one of their dawn chorus walks where I first met Helen Grey and it was she, along with Tim Orrell, who was leading the Nature Detective Walk along the Gower Way from Felindre to Lower Lliw Reservoir last Wednesday evening. See the photos below.

As this was the route taken by the Sights and Sounds project on the production day for the Felindre Families group, I thought it would be good to go along – and indeed it was! I discovered what the funny lumps and bumps are in the first field we crossed. We found a very old ash tree with branches twisting and twining round each other, reflecting its age. We saw Deadly Nightshade amongst other plants and flowers, a badger set, mole holes, young Hazelnuts, whin, thistles, ducks, etc., etc.

“Helen, you will have to remind me of that last little yellow flower I asked you about. I cannot remember it it now!”

Click here (Countryside Connections Events) to see what other Countryside Connections events are coming up.