Welcome to Day One

Posted on 07/04/201608/04/2016 by Alastair

Hello to everyone, existing and new visitors to the new StillWalks blog. Thank you for visiting anew and thank you for relocating with me if you are already a follower.

Insert your email to the subscription box in the side bar on the right to receive StillWalks images and sound clips on blog posts every morning – it’s a great way to start the day (or end it!).

NB If viewing this on a mobile device, the registration to receive emails at the bottom of this post.

Things should look very much the same on the blog and hopefully our migration here will be seamless. However, other aspects of the website have changed and there is now a new StillWalks package to which you can sign up or register an interest. To find out more about “Walking The StillWalks Way”, click the link to view a short presentation.

My Walk this Week continues

Meanwhile, back on my walk this week at Llansteffan Castle in Carmarthenshire, I thought I would start with a photo from the beginning of the walk because the view from the castle allows you to see into the distance, albeit hazy, and of course this is what I have been trying to do with StillWalks – see into the future.

Following on from yesterday’s post, a more detailed look at the stonework of Llansteffan Castle reveals all sorts of fascinating patterns, textures and colours. I’m not sure what is going on in with the surface patterns on the last shot, but it looks as though it may be additional to the actual stone itself.

My Walk this Week – Along the Canal

Posted on 14/03/201614/03/2016 by Alastair

Since visiting various sections of Swansea Canal a couple of years ago, I have meant to return to the section which runs through Clydach, just a few miles from Swansea in South Wales. Finally getting a convenient opportunity, I took one of my cameras and my small recorder and though of my walk as a recce for a StillWalks production in the future.

My walk this week illustrates this recce walk – where necessary I used my iPhone with its wider angle lens.

The walk starts by the canal where it meets a loop of the River Tawe. However, the first shot below shows the water of the canal flowing into the Clydach river before it joins the Tawe on the other side of the canal and flows on down to Swansea.

Fun and Games and a Cup of Tea

Posted on 12/03/201612/03/2016 by Alastair

Lliw Reservoir is a popular place with people of all ages these days. There is evidence below of the fact that it is as popular with children as it is with adults. And the fact that there is a nice cafe there is no doubt an added attraction but many go there for walks and never get a cuppa.

Whether people are there for a walk or a cup of tea is not really important – I simply like the fact that people get out there and enjoy the sights and sounds of the place. It is certainly a change of environment from the city or even to village.

Silence in the Woods

Posted on 10/03/201610/03/2016 by Alastair

The woods at this stage of my walk round Lower Lliw Reservoir are not silent as you will hear in the sound clip below. However, with there being no wind, much of the background sound that is often there, is missing. This changes the acoustics of the woodland environment entirely and the soft plop of ice and snow dripping into the reservoir can be clearly heard along with the hollow reverberation of someone’s voice and the raucous call of a crow.

The scene was magical, not least because of the crooked wooden fence that lines the twisting footpath and the soft crunch of my footsteps in the snow.

Peaceful Background

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.

My Walk this Week 22- Rhosilli Down

Posted on 22/02/201622/02/2016 by Alastair

My walk this week features a walk I did exactly a year ago to the week and took me up onto Rhosilli Down at the end of the Gower Peninsula in South Wales. It was one of those increasingly rare days in February when the sun shines, albeit through a haze, the weight of which changed with the wind throughout the day.

The track leading up from the village of Rhosilli to the top of the ridge overlooking the bay is quite steep. Whilst ascending this was not a problem, descending it again at the end of the day was most definitely an issue – one which my knees complained about bitterly and had me inching down from the down at a snail’s pace.

The walk, however, was most enjoyable and although I did not find the time in 2015 to post produce this as a StillWalks video, I hope to do so this year and in the meantime bring a sample of the place to my posts throughout this week.

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

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.

Meeting a Resident

Posted on 30/01/201630/01/2016 by Alastair

Having returned to the top of the farm track near the start of my short walk this week at MLRUK and Blaenige in Carmarthenshire, I met one of the local residents – in the form of one of their horses. I don’t know its name (I don’t even know if it is male ore female), but it was very friendly, pricked its ears up and came over for a chat.

My Walk this Week 10 – Maritime Observations

Posted on 30/11/201530/11/2015 by Alastair

It seems I am observing the observers at the start of this walk around the marina in Swansea. My walk this week spans both daytime and evening and a couple of the shots I am using I have previously posted on Instagram.

It looks like bath time for sea gulls is the order of the day for this sunny afternoon amongst the boats. You would think the birds on the floats were lining up to take their turn!