Waterton Wall 2

 

Just by the wall Layla met a new friend, Bradley the English Pointer. Lovely dog.

Waterton Wall

One of the good things about exhibiting, and meeting the public, is that people see what I am interested in (from my work) and then say "have you seen ... so and so." Often I have not, and this can lead to new adventures.

At Shipley a woman told me about the Waterton Wall, built my Charles Waterton in 1820s. It was nine foot high circled his estate, turning it into the world's first wildfowl and nature reserve, making him one of the world's first environmentalists.

When I got to the place last week I met someone there who had met David Attenborough when he was visiting the work of one of the people who had inspired him to take a life in conservation. 

Plans to reconstruct the wall are struggling to take shape, and the golf course within the walls is a bit of an aberration. But, it was an uplifting place to visit.
 

Archive Travel 2

This was the top of the first col on our 1992 India trip. A way had been chopped through the ice. 

Archive Travel

31 years ago, Paul and I were cycling over the Himalayas from Simla to Ladak. Over the highest through road in the world, this is the second highest point, a mere 5,065 metres. Well over twice as high as the highest point that the Tour de France managed this year (2,300 metres). It rained, which was extremely rare, but not that unwelcome. Kept us cool.

Archive Cycling

Me finishing a 100 ride in, I think, Norwich. The year is probably 1992. No helmets back in those days.

Summer in the City

Rowan seems to enjoy London life. Back in the summer (remember) this BeReal is from a picnic in the park with friends.

From the Archives

I have been scanning some old prints, came across this one of Mother in her kitchen in Kirtlington. Not sure of the year, sometime in the 1990s.

Early Harvest 2

Getting a good crop of potatoes in our clayey soil is not easy. This year we planted them in a free-standing wooden box, and they have produced a good crop. Great to eat them so fresh.

Ridgeway Trip 6

 I finished the Ridgeway at Streatley, then next morning rode up via Abingdon to Oxford where I got the train back to York. 

I worked in Abingdon in 1979 as a temp in an office that procured car radios for Fiat. It was not exciting work, and I am pretty sure that is now all done at the click on an algarythm by one person at most. I never really got beyond the industrial estate where the office was. I was pleasantly surprised by the Thames river side in the town centre.

Early Harvest 1

I picked a very good crop of blackcurrants this week. Nataliia kindly did the top and tailing (not a popular activity in our household), then I made some jam, and Nataliia made a Ukranian style jam that involves just the blackcurrants and some sugar and the food processor. Tasty.

Ridgeway Trip 5

 

Waylands Smithy is the name given to an ancient burial barrow that is over 5,500 years old. Just think about that. It is a quiet site that rewards some quiet time spent here. The trees in this shot are mere imposters, not even 100 years old, but it looks like the dead tree is giving a lecture to the venerable stones.

Hey DJ

Rowan went to a club in Hackney at the weekend, where her friend was doing her first DJ set. Rowan took the picture - pretty cool I'd say.

Ridgeway Trip 4

The morning did its best to be miserable, rain, traffic, the army shutting Salisbury Plain for the day, getting lost on a new retail-hell park. But I was fine, the day cleared and the ride across the Wans Dyke on to Silbury Hill and Avebury was great. Then up onto the ridge to Barbury Castle, and finally to a bizarre hotel up on the downs above Swindon, that used to be an RAF hospital.

It is hard to get a good shot of the stones at Avebury. Having a main road through the middle of the circle does not help. But I am pleased with this shot, gets a bit of the majesty and loneliness of the site across.

Interesting Weekend

We set off Friday lunchtime for Worcester to celebrate a friend's 60th with 70 people on a glamp site. Trouble was Danielle's dental appointment in the morning led to her having her second wisdom tooth out. We got as far as south of Sheffield when we decided it was daft to go camping with a bleeding mouth and instructions not to do anything energetic. So we came home; it looked a fantastic event too!

Then Sunday morning I was mowing the lawn (natch) when I felt my back go. A good few years since the last time, but unmistakeably it had gone into spasm as per many times before.

So I think we shall put this weekend down, as part of the ageing process (POTAP), like so many other things.

In between all that friends Paul, Justin and Andy came round to watch the Joux Plane stage of the Tour, accompanied by beer and Ukranian potato cakes. It was a cracker.

Here is Justin on his Moulton bike.

Ridgeway Trip 3

Nothing beats getting onto a good chalk track on top of a ridge. This was the ridgeway on Cranbourne Chase. It was perfect weather. I worked across the chalk via Salisbury to Amesbury, a good day for a good ride.

Ridgeway Trip 2

 

The first day on the route proper, sometimes on back roads, sometimes on holloway tracks like this on. I passed hill forts and dikes, amazing views, favourable wind, but 1400 metres of climbing; all together, a big day. Arrived at Iwerne Minster and stayed at pub night. The bad news, it was steak night. The good news, they did tuna which was delicious.

Ridgeway Trip 1

45 years ago I walked and wild camped with my girlfriend Sue along the Ridgeway from Streetly, on the Thames between Oxford and Reading, to Avebury and then on other ridge routes across Salisbury Plain through Dorset to Hod Hill near Blandford Forum. It was a great trip (albeit we did not really know what we were doing) and I had always wanted to complete the ancient route to Axmouth on the coast where the chalk gives way to the red Devon sandstone. The fact that this route has been in existance for several thousand years is amazing enough, the fact that it can still be traced and experienced together with very many amazing sites (Avebury, Stonehenge etc) is also amazing. 

So with a free week I packed the bike, booked accommodation and took the train to Exeter from where I cycled to the sea at Exmouth, then along the coast to Seaton. It was a route that the French would describe as "tres accidentée" meaning very hilly. I was all set to start the route the next day.

Looking east from Sidmouth. In the foreground the sandstone cliffs, in the distance the white chalk cliffs of Dorset.

In the Blood

Danielle was down in London at the weekend for a Quaker meeting and to remember her friend Gwen, who died earlier this year, with other friends. Rowan continues to show her creative side when taking photos.

Still Summer

Another pastoral idyll from the same walk. A bit of cloud in the sky gives a great light for photography. Not only does the sky get more interesting, but the reflection of the clouds in the canal adds to image as well.
 

Summer

When it is hot, I need to take Layla to walk where there is access to water pretty much all the time. Not so much to drink, but to wallow in, to keep herself cool. Think water buffalo. The Pocklington Canal at Hagg bridge fits the bill. It was particularly idyllic, the Merlin app told me there were Blackcaps and Whitethroats and Reed Buntings busy singing in the warm water meadow day.