Cenarth

Wales - We visited a pretty place called Cenarth, a few miles upriver from where we were staying. The Teifi river flows over falls, where in the autumn salmon and sea trout leap on their way upstream to their spawning grounds. It has an unusual bridge, built in 1787, that has round holes in its structure to reduce its weight without losing strength. 

Pembrokeshire Coastal Path

Wales - One end of the Pembrokeshire Coastal Path National Trail started right outside our holiday apartment. We decided to get the little bus, The Poppit Rocket (which also stopped right outside) to some way along the coast road so that we could walk back along the trail. It proved a good decision, much easier than trying to plan a circular walk and better than trying to get a bus back, since they are not very frequent. Conventionally, the last (or first, depending which way you do the walk) section of the Coastal Path is from Newport to St Dogmaels, which is about 16 miles. We decided that was too much for us, as it is very steep and rough terrain. So we started halfway, at an attractive little village called Moylgrove, where the bus stopped. We did a walk of almost 8 miles, though it felt longer as it was so up and down!

From the village down to the coast we walked though a wooded valley following a stream. Once we joined the coastal path itself, we found it was narrow and very overgrown with bracken so it was hard walking in parts. The views, however, were wonderful, despite the low cloud and occasional drizzle. It brightened up a bit as we walked. I love walking but don't usually tackle such steep paths so it was a challenge for me but quite exhilarating and very satisfying to achieve it. We were able to celebrate with excellent coffee and cake in the very nice little beach café at Poppit Sands, before tackling the last mile and a half back to our accommodation.

This area of the coast has some amazing rock formations, especially around the Cemaes Head nature reserve, where the sedimentary rocks are twisted and buckled and all the folds can be seen. The rocks are quite soft and subject to erosion, making lots of inaccessible coves where seals can be seen at the right season. I also saw a chough, a relatively rare bird that breeds on these cliffs.

Below is the stone that marks the start/finish of the Pembrokeshire Coastal Path.

Keeping watch

Wales - It was reassuring to see lifeguards on duty on Poppit Sands, though we had no intention of going in the sea. They keep a watchful eye on things and spot the dangerous rip tides that can quickly imperil even good swimmers. RNLI lifeguards are trained and equipped by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution but paid by local authorities to provide a service at key beaches. There's an RNLI lifeboat station at Poppit Sands too. The RNLI is a charity and many of its members, including the lifeboat crews, are volunteers. Heroes all - but even heroes have to do the chores, keeping their boats and vehicles clean and well cared for.

Colour pop at Poppit

Wales - the weather was so changeable... One minute it was grey and rainy (see Thursday) and the next minute the clouds thinned, the wind dropped, the sun came out, the sea glowed turquoise and the lifeguards' flag, though hanging limply, was bursting with colour. A minimalist photo but pleasing, I think.

Mini landscapes

Wales - When it's drizzling and wide landscapes are less attractive, that's the time to seek out a few mini-landscapes. These are some of what I found at Poppit Sands.

The secrets of the sea

Wales - Our holiday apartment overlooked the tidal estuary of the River Teifi, not far from where it flowed into the sea. It was a pleasant stroll down to the beautiful sandy beach at Poppit. Our first full day didn't deliver good weather, being mostly grey, windy and drizzly. The conditions were, however, pleasing to photograph. I love the moody harmonies of soft-toned 'almost neutrals' in these pictures.

Bwlch Nant yr Arian

If you're thinking I've been a bit quiet on the comments front lately, it's because I've been on holiday. I went with a couple of my best girlfriends for a week of walking and relaxing on the Welsh coast. I've never done anything quite like that before and we had a brilliant time.

It's a very long drive from here to our holiday apartment (near Cardigan) - and I was driving! So we made sure to have several rest stops. There aren't actually all that many good places to stop in deepest mid-Wales but we aimed for a nature reserve and visitor centre near Aberystwyth with a good Welsh name: Bwlch Nant yr Arian. One of its claims to fame is that there are many red kites in the area and they feed them every day at 3pm. Amazingly, without planning or trying, we arrived at exactly 5 minutes to 3! We couldn't have done that if we had planned it, I don't think!

We didn't have time to get to the hide but were able to watch from across a small lake - and what a spectacle it was. On a very dull, grey day,  my camera, hand-held, even with my new telephoto lens, wasn't really up to the job so I'm not pretending these photos are great but they give an idea of what we saw. So thrilling.

It perhaps helps to know that red kites were once so common they were considered to be vermin, so that they were hunted almost to extinction by the end of the 18th century in Britain. A few breeding pairs survived in rural mid-Wales and were unofficially protected by some far-sighted landowners. An extensive conservation, protection and reintroduction programme over the last 30 years has seen the numbers soar, so that they are now a common sight again in many parts of the country - and a magnificent sight too. I have never seen them in the numbers we saw here. We noticed that only a few of the kites were actually taking the food put out for them. Many just seemed to be enjoying the camaraderie, soaring about in the sky. They come in from about a ten mile radius, apparently. 

Crafty

Bingley Show 2016 - 

Do you recall the winner of last year's knitted handicraft section, a delightful Teddy Bears' Picnic?

The same lady has been busy again, this year taking both first and second prizes with some harvest mice and a bears' knitting circle.  Very clever and very cute. The detail is amazing. 

The Sheep Show

Bingley Show 2016 -  Can sheep laugh?  It seemed to me that these two were having a good giggle...
They were part of the 'cast' of 'The Sheep Show', a new innovation at this year's Bingley Show.  I didn't see all the show so I don't know what they were involved in - but I did watch one of the sheep being shorn. It looked like hard physical work for the shearer, made more difficult as he was keeping up a running commentary through a head microphone all the time!  The other sheep appeared to be watching intently and with some concern. I never realised they had such personality.

More birds

Bingley Show 2016 -  More birds from the Wise Owl display. This attractive creature is an American Kestrel. Smaller than our native kestrels, it has such exquisite colours and markings. This one is called Peanut. Maybe it eats them?

And here is Orville, the Little Owl, again. Cute and comedic, these owls are the only owls that you tend to see during the day. With those big eyes and such a stern look, he reminds me of a teacher! "What are you doing, girl!?"

The birds

Bingley Show 2016 - The birds of prey on display on the Wise Owls stand were all rescue birds. They rehabilitate them where possible and return them to the wild. Some, for various reasons, cannot be re-wilded. They become tame and used to being handled and are ideal for 'close encounters'. It is particularly good that children are able to get close to them and learn to appreciate them.

The beautiful Barn Owl above is called Bubbles. Barn Owls are native to Britain and the light plumage makes them look like ghosts, swooping silently in the twilight. My (country-living) sister had one that roosted in her barn/ garage. I've only ever seen one in the wild once but they are unforgettable. 

The pretty bird below is a Gyr x Saker Falcon called Ghost.

Encounters with animals 5

Bingley Show 2016 - I'm not sure I've ever bothered to go in to the 'Mice and Cavies' tent before. But the cavies (guinea pigs) are full of personality in their own little ways. When I was a child, my best friend had a hamster. I remember it escaped its cage and was eventually found and rounded up in the coal cellar! Hamsters and mice are nocturnal though, which might tend to make them a bit boring as pets.

Encounters with animals 4

Bingley Show 2016 - My favourite show tent is the one for cats. The pedigrees on show are so beautiful and so varied. I always have a soft spot for the British Shorthair Silver Tabbies, but there only seemed to be one this year and I couldn't get near to take its photo. There were several of the huge Maine Coons (below). They're gorgeous too and very soft and cuddly, like big hearthrugs!  I'm not sure what the breed above is. Its squashed nose suggests some kind of Persian or Exotic Shorthair, with a slightly curly coat? I'm no expert! Anyway, it also was gorgeous and seemed very much loved. I wished I could have got a lower viewpoint but there is always a metal mesh barrier so you can't crouch down and shoot low.

Encounters with animals 3

Bingley Show 2016 - Little girl meets even smaller owl.... a Little Owl, in fact, one of our native species. The birds were being shown by Wise Owl Birds of Prey, a Yorkshire-based organisation that rescues and rehabilitates birds of prey and offers displays and educational 'experience' days.
I have a gorgeous photo that shows more of the girl's face and her delight but I'm not comfortable blogging that one. (I am always wary of showing children that I don't know personally.) And the owl wasn't looking at me either! Never work with children or animals (birds)!

Encounters with animals 2

Bingley Show 2016 - This huge albino Burmese Python is a good deal less strokeable than a donkey (well, I think so!) but still fascinating to a small boy. The reptiles were from a place in Shipley called 'Into the Wild' that offers photo shoots, parties and encounters with various exotic creatures.

Encounters with animals 1

Bingley Show 2016 - It hardly seems possible that a year has passed since the last Bingley Show but it's that time of year again. First day of the school holidays... warm, dry, even sunny in parts - that in itself is amazing! So what better place to go with my camera than Myrtle Park in Bingley for the annual one-day agricultural show.
I visit it most years and it's always fun but it does get harder to find new and different angles to photograph. This year I seemed to be drawn to watching children encounter animals. I love to see their wide-eyed wonder and simple joy. I don't think this little girl was old enough to ride on a donkey but she liked stroking one nevertheless. Even the donkey seemed to be smiling.

Hope in the evening

Walking back from church one Sunday night, I enjoyed seeing the late evening sunshine catching the top of Hope Hill and illuminating some of the honeyed stone of the buildings higher up in Saltaire. Traffic lights have replaced the old roundabout at the intersection of the Leeds and Bradford roads. The busy junction seems far safer now, except when the lights failed and temporary ones had to be brought in!

We're going on an owl hunt

One of the fun things to do in Leeds is to go on an owl hunt. There is even a map and a trail! Owls feature on the Coat of Arms of the city and the motif is repeated all over Leeds in various guises. The three owls date back to the coat of arms of the Savile family of Anjou in France, who were given large tracts of land in Yorkshire by William the Conqueror after his invasion in 1066. One of their descendants, Sir John Savile, became the Leeds' first Alderman in 1626 and the city Coat of Arms, three owls. three stars and a fleece, was devised at that time.

Off grid

In common with many cities, lots of the newer buildings in Leeds have acres of glass that provide interesting reflections. Sometimes a view catches your eye. Here I was drawn to the colours, angles and grid lines. It can be quite hard to tell what is a reflection and what is a view through glass.

Sovereign Square

Some of the most modern buildings in Leeds city centre are really quite attractive, I think. This is the new office for the large accountancy and financial services company, KPMG, opened in late 2015. It is designed to be environmentally friendly with a green roof. Its expanse of glass has an interesting turquoise tint towards the base of each of the four levels. The award-winning Sovereign Square development is part of the regeneration of this formerly industrial part of the city down by the docks.