Tag Archives: valley

Climbing into Forest Stillness in November

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It’s a steep path into the forest from the road but during a murky November when the days are getting very short the stillness that can be found there when the wind isn’t blowing is a real treat. Don’t get me wrong, I like the sound of the wind, but I also like the quiet peacefulness amongst the trees of this small forest when the sound of the motorway to the west is not carried over the hill. Even in the upper, thinner parts of this woodland, in amongst the spiky gorse, the air can be still and the sound of the conversing birds carries through the trees.

Forest Gorse in November

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Looking at the Landscape in March

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Back in March I was enjoying one of my many walks up through the forest and enjoying the sunny views up the valley at the foot of the forest and then again across the Welsh landscape to the Gower Peninsula from the hill at the top of the forest. No camera or sound kit with me, these shots were taken on my iPhone and it seems I did no sound recording there during that month, so no sound clip today.

Edge of the forest in March

view from the forest

View across fields to the Gower from the forest

valley view

View up the valley from the foot of the forest

Sheep in the Shade – Reviewing the Walk

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At the end of my walk this week I found myself cold again. Unlike the sheep in the shade of this frosty field, I did not have a thick wooly coat but a few hundred yards earlier I had been hot in the sunshine on top of the hill.

Listen to the soundscape for the walk below and take a look at the image sequence at the same time – I hope find it different to the last time I walked this route in the opposite direction just a few weeks ago.

sheep and frost

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Perspective on a Rusty Railing

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Having descended from the hills on my walk this week, I came eventually to the River Dulais. The footbridge across the river at this point in the valley is not the most attractive of bridges, being more functional than decorative, but it still has an attraction for me and not least for the old  but solid rusty, mossy colour and texture.river railing

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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

If viewing this in an email, please click the post title to see other photos in this post, thank you.

Foxgloves
Thistle
wildflowers
Dandelion clocks
waterside grasses
Bullrushes by the lake

A Field of Fog and Fences

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When I arrived at the highest point of my walk this week and rose above the fog, I was taken completely by surprise. Despite having walked through the mist, I hadn’t expected to see such a solid looking wall of it completely blocking the view I would normally have over the Loughor estuary and beyond to the Gower peninsula.

field of fog

However, on turning my eyes to the north, the scene was clearer and the last wisps of mist were Continue reading→

Ghostly Mist and Trees

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Looking over my local South Wales landscape during my morning walk to the woods, the dawn light gradually brightens and the mist lying along the river Loughor gives the trees a ghostly appearance.

pre-dawn mist