My walk this week shows images from my archive and a walk along Rhossili Down at the end of the Gower Peninsula in South Wales.
For all the changes in environmental circumstances from day to day or even hour to hour, these photos from 2014 cannot show any potential differences in the underlying structure and general appearance of the place. The pace of change on a geological time scale is not the same as our lives and although it is true that we sometimes see rocks fall from a cliff or even cliffs collapse as a result of erosion from the sea, the overall changes can be almost imperceptible.Continue reading→
While the day was calm for our memorial for walk leader Mike Aspland and to raise funds for the Old Mill Foundation cancer hospice, there was enough lift for the soaring of hang gliders to take place in this popular spot for the activity – Rhossili Down at the end of the Gower Peninsula. If you would like to donate to the Old Mill Foundation, please visit their website and click the “Donate” button.Continue reading→
The day was calm for the memorial walk for Mike Aspland to raise funds for the Old Mill Foundation cancer hospice and the sea was becalmed. The light and gentle patterns on the water along with the almost non existent change between sea and sky illustrate the atmospheric conditions perfectly. If you would like to donate to the Old Mill Foundation, please visit their website and click the “Donate” button.Continue reading→
My walk this week is a walk in memory of Mike Aspland, a walk leader who died of cancer at the end of last year and had benefitted from the services provided by the Old Mill Foundation cancer hospice in Penclawdd on North Gower. The walk took place Rhossili and aimed to raise funds for the hospice – if anyone would like to donate to the the Old Mill Foundation, please visit their website and click the “Donate” button.Continue reading→
Firstly I should say that this has not happened to me! However, people getting cut off by the tide and stuck on the Worm’s Head at the end of the Gower Peninsula is a regular occurrence and one which requires the RNLI to launch their boat from the Port Eynon station to rescue them. During last month’s Taste of Gower walk we called in at the local RNLI station for a talk by one of their members.
The next ToG walk is this coming Friday and will be at Rhossili from where we will be able to look out to the Worm’s Head as we walk out along the cliffs. This is also a fundraising walk for The Old Mill Foundation.
My walk this week along the ridge of Rhosilli Down at the end of the Gower Peninsula started with a beautiful February day. In spite of the falling rain to be seen in the image below, the weather mostly held bright for me and the walk, aside from a painful descent at the end, was very enjoyable. I would recommend it to anyone visiting the area.
If your knees, like mine, warn you against it, then I suggest a flatter walk out to the end of the peninsula for a closer look at the Worm’s Head and a more distant look at the Down. You may be able to watch the hang gliders and birds soaring above the hill slope and beach.
In the meantime, listen to the soundscape below and click the first thumbnail image below to view a selection of this weeks walk photos in sequence.
The soundscape below is, I feel, a little condensed but illustrates the changes in wind, the activities in the sky and the ground underfoot. I expect the StillWalks video to be about twice the length and therefore I will have a bit more flexibility with soundscape for it.
Rhosilli Down 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.
My return walk along Rhosilli Down meant heading into the sun. This is far from ideal in photographic terms, but as one of the purposes of a StillWalks video is to illustrate the walk taken whatever the time of day or direction the walk is taking, the only answer, photographically speaking, is to deal with it.
The photos taken obviously don’t have to be taken into the sun but if they are, as in the first shot below, the almost blinding haze from the sun is simply a true illustration of the real view of the walk at that point. Photographers will gather from this that I am not a huge fan of lens filters. That’s not to say they aren’t useful sometimes, but on this occasion the glare is what I was wanting to represent.
The kind of light the sun was giving at this point of my walk was white and glaring from virtually every angle and even directing the camera down towards the beach from high above had its issues. The height of the Down above Rhosilli Bay, however, can easily be seen when you pick out the tiny people walking on the beach.
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.
